De Beers criticises State Diamond Trader
Friday, March 05, 2010
Asked about widespread diamond industry dissatisfaction with the SDT Noko told Miningmx, "that area is a mess. It needs to be fixed and I believe government is committed to fixing it. This is a temporary setback."
The SDT was set up by government in 2007 with major support from De Beers and the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). It aimed to increase the supply of rough diamonds to local polishers and cutters.
With his theme of 'Delivering on Our Promise, One Step at a Time', he sought to project an image of a focused, determined leader building a new ‘Rome’. Sadly, parts of his speech were not about laying bricks, but about settling old scores.It is deeply worrying that a head of government would use such a pivotal national address to launch another bitter broadside against the media and his political detractors. His portrayal of the...