President Cyril Ramaphosa, after being lambasted for initially withholding the controversial Zimbabwe flight report from Minister of Defence and Military Veterans Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, has officially made it public on Wednesday 30 September.
The report comes after Mapisa-Nqakula allowed a delegation of African National Congress (ANC) officials to travel on an air-force jet to meet with their counterparts in Harare, Zimbabwe.
The presidency issued a statement on Wednesday saying that the publication of the minister’s initial and supplementary reports to Ramaphosa is informed by his commitment to transparency.
RAMAPHOSA TAKES THREE DECISIONS FOLLWOING ZIMBABWE REPORT
According to the report, Mapisa-Nqakula visited Zimbabwe on official business on 8 September 2020 and travelled on a South African Air Force (SAAF) aircraft which also conveyed senior leaders of the ANC.
After receiving the report, Ramaphosa took the following decisions;
Ramaphosa has since issued the minister with a formal reprimand for conveying the ANC delegation to Zimbabwe on an aircraft of the South African Air Force (SAAF);
The President has sanctioned the Minister by imposing a salary sacrifice on the Minister’s salary for three months, starting from 1 November 2020. Her salary for the three months should be paid into the Solidarity Fund, which was established to support the country’s response to the coronavirus pandemic; and The President has also directed the Minister to make sure that the ANC reimburses the state for the costs of the flight to Harare and to report to him once that has been done.
The President took these decisions after his consideration of Mapisa-Nqakula’s initial report and a supplementary report that the president had directed the minister to provide on the circumstances that led to the ANC delegation travelling on a South African Air Force plane to Zimbabwe.
