At last, common sense!

"A LOT of small ( Black) companies do not know how to put together a health, safety and environment plan and in most cases, tenders are turned down because people do not meet the safety requirements". This was the dollop of common sense delivered in Durban by Sapref manager, Sandile Mgojo, the manager for contracts and procurement engineering services at the refinery. He was speaking at a conference organised by the Durban Chamber of Commerce, Sapref and the eThekwini municipality. The conference aims to " help small, medium and micro enterprises realise the opportunities in the industry" though quite how a conference does this, is anyone's guess. Still, how pleasant a change it is to have some common sense on the subject. "We know that people are frustrated by this because they are always told that there are opportunities," Mgojo said. Safety requirements were the biggest hurdle for small businesses seeking to enter the petrochemicals industry. The industry handled highly explosive products every day. Amen, says Spigot. "A lot of the people that approach us offer to cut grass at the refinery, provide catering services or pest control services," said Mgojo. "We need companies that will offer hi-tech repair services."Amen again. Unstated is the blind public ignorance about the oil industry. Most people think it is sitting greedily on a great big pile of money and selfishly refusing to spend it. Spigot doubts conferences will change this mindset. Only a retreat from congenital oil company secrecy has a chance of achieving it. That means real lobbying by people who know the facts. It means hiring lobbyists with skills that extend beyond the colour of their skins.