There are growing calls for action to be taken against Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni who was allegedly involved in corruption while at a Limpopo municipality.
Image: Presidency
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has once again called for Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni to be fired amid swirling allegations of corruption that took place while she was a municipal manager at the Ba-Phalaborwa Local Municipality in Limpopo.
"Over a month ago revelations emerged about the Minister in the Presidency and her murky R2.5 million dealings when she was a municipal manager. Today that inquiry has been expanded and the figure has soared to a R80 million fraud and corruption investigation by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation," the DA's Dianne Kohler Barnard said.
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She added that to date, the minister has not commented on the allegations in a bid to publicly clear her name.
"Minister Ntshavheni has full access into the most secret of secret dealings of the State Security Agency for so long as she stays in office.
"Having written to the President calling on him to fire her weeks ago, all that has emerged in reply is an acknowledgment of receipt," Barnard said.
"Worryingly, Minister Ntshavheni joins a growing list of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s confidants and Ministers under criminal investigation for fraud and corruption, highlighting a troubling pattern of the President’s failure to exercise due diligence when appointing individuals to critical positions within his government," added Action SA's Athol Trollip said.
The party is calling for Ramaphosa to suspend Ntshavheni.
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The Economic Freedom Fighter (EFF) has also called for action against Ntshavheni.
EFF national spokesperson, Leigh-Ann Mathys, said Ntshavheni’s role in the corrupt awarding of a tender in Ba-Phalaborwa Local Municipality, represents the foundations of what is wrong with local government in South Africa.
"This includes a lack of capacity to conduct basic functions, reliance on consultants, and the misuse of power by officials in order to influence tenders and practice corrupt activities. Municipal managers have become a law unto themselves in municipalities, and Ntshavheni represents the earliest generation of arrogance and flouting of laws by officials at a local government level," she said.
Meanwhile, the African National Congress's Fikile Mbalula has defended Ntshavheni, stating that she has to respond to at the moment.
Speaking at a media briefing last month, Mbalula said the party would not be drawn into commenting on the matter suffice to say that the ANC will respond on "something tangible".
Accusing the DPCI or Hawks of trying to ruin Ntshavheni's image, Mbalula said law enforcement must not seek to find people guilty through media.
seanne.rall@iol.co.za
IOL
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