During these times of severe social distress - when the majority of South Africans earns less than twelve rands per day, when the rate of unemployment is almost 40 percent and when the Government repeatedly cites financial constraints - public expenditure of R30 billion on new warships and warplanes is a matter of acute concern.
The Government came to office in 1994 committed to socio-economic upliftment via the Reconstruction and Development Programme. Yet in November 1998 the Cabinet announced that it had approved-in -principle expenditure of R29,8 billion weapons systems against claims that such expenditure would generate offsets worth R110,6 billion and create 64 165 jobs.
Church leaders at that time called for transparency and public debate. Instead, the acquisition programme and offsets have been shrouded in secrecy under claims of commercial confidentiality.
International experience has documented numerous and massive cases of corruption relating to weapons procurements. The Cameron Commission of Inquiry into Armscor in 1994/95 found that both corruption and incompetence were also widespread within South Africa's armaments industry.
Civil society therefore owes a debt of gratitude to the Sunday Times Newspaper for drawing attention to a document which claims major incompetence in the acquisition procurement programme.
Church leaders have repeatedly, drawn attention to the crises of poverty which afflict South Africa, including a culture of violence. We believe that these legacies of the apartheid era must be redressed as a matter of national priority. South Africa's own history has proved non-violent resolution of conflict to be more effective than reliance upon instruments of war.
The promised benefits of acquisition programmes are not logical, and do not "add-up".
Accordingly, we endorse suggestions of a full (and public) judicial investigation into the weapons acquisition and offset processes. And we call upon the Cabinet to halt the acquisition programme until a national consensus has been reached on these issues.
The Most Revd Njongokulu Ndungane