Chairperson, the Select Committee on Petitions and Executive Undertakings, having considered the Cakwebe Petition, received by the office of the Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces on 6 November 2017 and subsequently referred to the committee on 7 November 2017, reports as follows: The Cakwebe Petition was submitted to the Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, on behalf of the Eastern Cape Black Fishers Association, by the chairperson of the association and the secretary of the association, Mr Mzamo Cakwebe.
On 3 August 2018, the committee held a hearing on the petition at Premier Hotel Regent, East London. The purpose of the hearing was to afford the petitioner as well as other relevant stakeholders the opportunity to make oral submissions to the committee on the subject matter of the petition submitted to the NCOP.
Following extensive deliberations on the submissions made during the hearings on the petition, the committee recommends as follows: Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the DTI and Department of Labour are to establish an interdepartmental task team aimed at investigating and ultimately addressing the issues raised in the petition, including but not limited to the issues of the working conditions of chokka or squid fishers; the allocation of fishing rights
to black fishers in the squid industry; the amount that fishers get paid per tank of chokka or squid caught; and the amount that fishing companies get per tank of chokka or squid exported.
Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Department of Labour, the DTI and Department of Transport are to appear before the committee within six months of the tabling of this report in the House and report to the committee on the progress made in implementing recommendations, except 5,1 to 5,5 above. [Interjections.] I put this report to be considered. Thank you