THE government and the ANC were in lockdown this weekend as ministers and the Presidency reviewed the debacle of the Public Protector’s preliminary report into the Nkandla affair being leaked to a newspaper. The Mail & Guardian newspaper published a detailed account of Thuli Madonsela’s findings titled, Opulence on a Grand Scale, which found that President Zuma derived “substantial” personal gain from the R206million so-called security improvements to his private homestead. The report called on the president to pay back taxpayers’ money wrongly spent and to apologise for misleading Parliament. Publication of the report prompted an angry response from Madonsela herself. She accused the M&G of behaving unlawfully and unethically and in violation of the Public Protector Act, which forbids publication of documents without her permission. But the newspaper denied it acted illegally and said it acted in the public interest. Among the revelations in the report was that a swimming pool, visitors’ centre, amphitheatre, cattle kraal, marquee area, extensive paving and new houses for relatives at Nkandla could not be construed as necessary for security and were an “enormous cost” to the taxpayer. It criticised Zuma’s order that his private architect be appointed “principal agent” to oversee the upgrade on behalf of the Department of Public Works. There was also “excessive” spending on 20 police houses, a clinic and two helipads. In reaction to the report, ANC spokesman, Jackson Mthembu, defended the president, but did not seek to challenge any of the report’s provisional findings. Analysts said yesterday with the ANC gearing up for next year’s elections, a comprehensive response from the president was needed to allay fears that he misled the country over the costs of Nkandla upgrades and who was picking up the bill. At the same time, any suggestion that Madonsela’s conclusions have been tampered with when the official report is released could seriously damage the ruling party’s electoral fortunes. Meanwhile, online critics have been adding their names to a petition calling for Zuma’s impeachment. By: SUN REPORTER
Posted on: Sun, 01 Dec 2013 10:05:03 +0000
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