Transport policy document out for public comment

AFTER A lengthy wait, the final draft white paper on SA maritime transport policy has been put up for public comment – but with little time for maritime industry stakeholders to compose their thoughts. Minister of transport Jeff Radebe – whose department, along with the SA Maritime Safety Authority (Samsa) compiled this latest draft – acknowledged the delay. In his letter to stakeholders accompanying the draft, Radebe said that the white paper had “undergone an extensive consultation process, hence its rather belated release for final comments from industry players”. And, he added, this call for public comments was “for those in the industry who might not have had the opportunity to engage in the extensive consultative process that has already taken place”. In this rush to finalise the policy and hear public reaction, FTW has been unable to raise any comments on this latest draft – although one contact revealed his hopes for a better version than the last one, launched two years ago, and which he described as “a complete disaster”. When we approached our maritime legal sources, the legal beagles all still had their noses firmly in the draft document – looking to work out t he details of the policy, and their reactions to it.