Election of Chairperson

Meeting report

Opening remarks

Ms Tyhileka Madubela, Committee Secretary, welcomed Members and outlined the agenda – the Committee was meeting to elect its new Chairperson. She then called for nominations for the Committee’s Chairperson.
 
Mr S Makhubele (ANC) nominated Mr Mohlopi Mapulane (ANC) as the Committee’s new Chairperson.
 
Ms H Nyambi (ANC) seconded the nomination of Mr Mapulane as the Chairperson of the Committee.
 
Mr Mapulane was formally elected to be the new Chairperson with no objections.
 
The Chairperson thanked the Committee for its expression of confidence in electing him to chair it going forward. He confessed that he had never engaged the environmental sector before except at one particular point. His hope was that there would be cooperation between him, the Committee and the support staff.   He then asked the Committee secretary to address the Committee on the following days programme.
 
The Secretary outlined the details of an oversight visit to Port Elizabeth (PE) by the Committee where it would be attending the annual SA Agulhas II Open Day. It involved departure from Cape Town to PE and the return trip to Cape Town on the SA Agulhas II  icebreaking polar supply and research ship.
 
The Chairperson noted that every Member of the Committee would be going except for him as he had just been elected.
 
Mr Makhubele said that the voyage on the Agulhas II would probably be the only trip Members would ever have on a research ship therefore he was encouraging every Member that had agreed to attend to do so. Moreover as the Committee would be on the ship their normal oversight work and interaction with the Department of Environmental Affairs (DEA) would not be similar to others before.
 
The Chairperson thanked the Members that had attended and noted that all unfinished arrangements would be sent to Members and that a tentative program for a joint meeting with the select Committee on Environmental Affairs on the 24 May would also be communicated as soon as arrangements had been finalised.

The meeting was adjourned.