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Transportation Minister Fikile Mbalula and his office responded to criticism after a video, which went viral, shows him asking to arrest a motorist, who said he had gone to buy food because he did not have a permit.
In the video, Mbalula is seen questioning the driver about where he is going and asking him to show a travel permit.
The clip was filmed last Friday during an operation at the Grasmere toll plaza, where Mbalula released the highway death statistics for the Easter weekend.
News24 reported that 28 people, many of them pedestrians, were killed on South African roads over the Easter weekend.
In response, the ministry said the short clip did not give the full context of what happened during the operation, resulting in the motorist’s arrest.
Mbalula, in a series of tweets, replied that the man had lied and that “his car expired in 2016 (sic), he also lied about owning a supermarket.”
Esethu Hasane, the department’s media liaison officer, also responded on Twitter, saying the video was short and gave no context to what happened.
He added that the motorist was driving with 2016 documents and that, when he was stopped at the toll gate, he said he was returning from buying food, but no food was found in the car.
“[The] the hurdle had to pass mainly essential service workers, allowed with legal documents, “Hasane said.
When News24 contacted the office to seek more clarity on what happened, Hasane said the department would not comment further beyond its responses on Twitter.
The closing regulations allow people to leave their home if they have to do essential business, such as buying food or seeking medical assistance.
– Compiled by Sesona Ngqakamba
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