Johannesburg - The Gupta wedding party’s departure from OR Tambo International Airport was delayed by almost five hours on Friday – as the government tried to save face by ensuring all regulations were scrupulously adhered to.
South Africa’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) first processed the Airbus 330 to ensure it had its Foreign Operator Permit before the 207 passengers and 12 crew making up the Gupta party were thoroughly vetted by Immigration and Customs – in stark contrast to their controversial arrival in the country on Tuesday when almost all rules and regulations were flouted.
The Airbus 330 finally left at 7.45pm, almost six hours after the party had checked in.
Home Affairs spokesman Ronnie Mamoepa confirmed last night that they were responsible for the delay.
“In line with (the government’s) commitment to ensure compliance with immigration laws, upon departure of the visitors who were scheduled to leave for India today, we have processed 207 passengers and 12 crew members through our immigration section. Part of this was to ensure that the number of those who alighted at Waterkloof Air Force Base tallied with the number of passengers scheduled to depart today. That’s what caused the delay,” he said.
Earlier, the CAA had given the Airbus 330 a thorough going-over before imposing a penalty of R80 000 for violating its regulations by failing to secure a Foreign Operator Permit which allows it to fly in South African air space.
CAA spokeswoman Phindile Gwebu said they had issued the permit by 4pm after they had cleared the plane for take-off. She said the fine was payable in 30 days, although an enquiry had been made about how it should be paid.
SARS spokesman Adrian Lackay confirmed a “full operational team” was at the airport last night.
Earlier, the Gupta party – who flew into a storm of controversy after they landed at Waterklooof Air Force Base before receiving a VIP escort to Sun City which is normally only accorded diplomats and guests on state visits – said they were bitter about the furore around their visit.
They were rushed into the departure lounge at OR Tambo International Airport – to which their plane had been moved on Thursday – with their luggage and sealed cargo boxes. Customs officials with sniffer dogs moved among the suitcases, sniffing each bag.
Bride Vega Gupta and groom Aakash Jahajgarhia were ushered into the airport through a different boarding gate to avoid media attention.
Minor dramas played out at the check-in counters as visibly upset guests gestured at the media contingent that had gathered to film their departure. Some of the angry guests shoved photographers trying to take pictures.
They complained bitterly about being treated “unfairly” when all they had done was come to enjoy a wedding of their friends and family.
One guest, Rajesh Gupta, who stated he was not directly related to the Gupta family, quizzed journalists on why they had labelled the wedding a scandal.
“We are happy to be here,” he said. “We don’t want this thing we see in the newspapers. We want to see everybody happy, but we feel a bitter taste now after this.”
Rajesh Gupta praised the hospitality they had received and urged “the people of this country to remain happy and appreciative”.
“We have no problem with South Africa. It’s a country of beautiful people,” he said, before adding that what happened with them landing at the Waterkloof Air Base was “the problem of the South African government”.
Other guests refused to comment.
The government had moved to stem the criticism earlier in the day by hosting a press conference attended by almost the entire Cabinet including Home Affairs Minister Naledi Pandor, Minister of Defence and Military Veterans Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, Minister of International Relations and Co-operation Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, Justice Minister Jeff Radebe, Minister in the Presidency Collins Chabane and police commissioner Riah Phiyega.
During the lengthy conference, several ministers sought to reiterate repeatedly that “no executive authority had given any official the go-ahead”.
Radebe announced that four other high-ranking officials had been suspended while a a team of directors-general investigated “all the circumstances surrounding this incident”. The team was expected to report back within seven working days.
The officer commanding the air force command post, Brigadier-General L Lombard; the officer commanding air force base, Brigadier-General TS Madumane; movement control officer Lieutenant-Colonel C Anderson; and Major-General Gela of the SAPS operational response services were suspended along with chief of state protocol, ambassador Bruce Koloane who had been suspended earlier in the week.
Radebe said a preliminary investigation had found the defence attaché of the Indian High Commission had sent a request for aircraft clearance to the Air Force Command Unit within the SANDF on April 4. The Air Force consulted with Koloane and facilitated the clearance of the aircraft without informing the chief of the SANDF.
He said there was no record of a note verbale from the Indian High Commission notifying international relations of a visiting delegation requiring diplomatic assistance and aircraft clearance and landing rights.
He said the convoy which had provided the Gupta party with a VIP escort to Sun City were not SAPS vehicles. The vehicles were identified as hired from “S&M Transportation in Pretoria”.
A criminal case had been opened against the owner for illegally using the emergency lights, he said.
Jakes van der Merwe, an assistant manager at SMH Car Hire in Edenvale, was stunned to hear a criminal charge been laid against it.
“We hired to the Guptas but we didn’t organise (the blue lights). We don’t own any blue lights,” she said. She also indicated that intermediaries had collected the vehicles. General manager Dave Raw refused to comment.
Radebe said it had has also been established that some members of the contracted security company are members of both the SAPS and Tshwane metro police.
Two metro police officers and one police reservist were arrested on Thursday.
The involvement of marked SAPS vehicles is still under investigation.
Herman Steyn, the owner of Idol Protection Services of Centurion, said to be the Guptas’s personal security chief and who provided the security for the wedding, refused to comment.
DA spokesman David Maynier yesterday slammed the government’s salvage operation as a “damage-control exercise designed to firewall President Jacob Zuma and others from political fallout”.
He said he found it hard to believe Zuma “did not know” about the plans to land at Waterkloof.
He said the president may not have been briefed on the details, but said he absolutely did not believe that the ministers and deputy ministers of six departments knew nothing as they have claimed.
He said senior officials were not the only ones who needed to carry the can for the debacle – ministers also needed to held responsible.
Saturday Star