19 February 2001
The Minister of Transport Dullah Omar would like to correct the impression created inadvertently when interviewed by a Rapport Journalist over the weekend.
The official position is that Minister Omar received no call from Dr Allan Boesak. The Minister in his interview with the Journalist said he saw nothing wrong in receiving a call from Dr Boesak but in a process creating an impression that he received a call. The Minister still holds a view that there is nothing wrong in receiving a call though he would not be party to any illegality.
Minister Omar would like to put on record that he rejects the wild and irresponsible claims from the Democratic Alliance that receiving a call mean interference in the working of the Department of Correctional Services. The reality is that there has never been such interfere, thereby making these claims unfounded and groundless.
The Minister would also like to reiterate that Dr Boesak is and will always be held in high regard by himself and many other South Africans. In so far as his conviction and sentence for imprisonment are concerned, Minister Omar accepts that the law has taken its cause and he respects the law.
"Like everyone else who is punished according to the law, Dr Boesak must not be humiliated and should be given an opportunity to serve his sentence and come back and play a role in the future of our country," Omar said.
ISSUED BY
Mike Mabasa
HEAD: Media Liaison and Corporate Communication
Ministry of Transport
Pretoria
TEL: 083 680 7048
FAX: 083 676 8450