Swapna Prabhakaran
Psst … wanna buy a Mirage aircraft or a navy tugboat? Vast quantities of South African National Defence Force (SANDF) ammunition, vehicles, aircraft and other matriel are to be disposed of – most by public auction and tender.
A SANDF representative said the equipment was no longer needed as it was outdated, beyond maintenance and because the army was smaller.
The matriel includes 157 434 anti- personnel mines, 200 000 R1 assault rifles, 357 artillery guns, 53 Impala aircraft, 35 Mirage aircraft, three Alouette helicopters and one navy tugboat.
The representative said ammunition had been disposed of by dumping it in the sea in the past, but “this practice was no longer possible and alternative means need to be found”.
“In view of the fact that ammunition was designed to be disposed of by means other than firing, the requirement creates major problems internationally.”
Other commodities would be disposed of through tender procedures and at auction centres throughout the country.
Destroying weapons was a costly and time- consuming process, said the SANDF. For example, mine-protected vehicles with armour plating took time to break down and could not be dealt with in the same way as other scrap metal.
Less lethal SANDF equipment includes clothing, camping equipment, mess crockery and cutlery, commercial vehicles and spare parts will also be on sale to less bloodthirsty members of the public.
As part of its down-sizing, the SANDF has also returned numerous buildings to the Department of Public Works, large tracts of land for agricultural development and land to its original owners in the government’s restitution process.
Property in Paarl and Pretoria was sold to Denel.