ANA reports that the Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Sunday that agriculture minister Senzeni Zokwana needed to explain what his department was doing to ensure that jobs were saved, and what bird flu containment measures were in place in the poultry industry.  

The DA will be asking Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries portfolio committee chairwoman, Machwene Semenya, to summon Zokwana to brief parliament on his department’s contingency plans to stop further job losses following the spread of the bird flu virus in SA.  More cases of the outbreak have been recorded in six provinces and this poses major threats to the poultry industry, with 111,000 direct and indirect agricultural jobs at risk.  There have reportedly already been job losses due to the spread of the virus.  “The truth is that if Minister Zokwana does not have contingency plans in place, this crisis can reach unacceptable proportions,” said DA spokeswoman Annette Steyn.

• Read this report in full at SABC News
• Read the DA’s press statement in this regard at DA Newsroom

Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page