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By IOL Reporter 
19h ago
Durban – Health Minister Dr. Zweli Mkhize has denied allegations that he received money from controversial businessman Edwin Sodi.
In a statement released by his office on Friday, Mkhize said he had received several inquiries from the media after the allegations were made this week when Sodi appeared at the Zondo Commission. During his test money, he revealed that his company, Blackhead Consulting, had made various payments to ANC officials and government officials between 2013 and 2019.
At the time it was reported that ANC officials who received payments from Sodi included Zizi Kodwa, Thulas Nxesi, Pinky Kekana, Paul Mashatile and Zweli Mkhize. The payments were made while Sodi’s company had won government contracts worth millions of rand.
“I wish to state categorically that I have never received funds from Mr. Sodi, either personally or through third parties intended for my personal benefit. I can confirm that during my tenure as General Treasurer of the ANC, Mr. Sodi, as well as many other individuals, companies and business organizations, made donations to the African National Congress. In fact, when I took over from TG, Mr. Sodi’s contacts were available in the ANC’s donor database as one of the people who had previously donated to the ANC.
“This database was compiled and maintained by the finance office through various public fundraising events carried out by the ANC. This is how we get in touch with people or companies and invite them to our events, ”said Mkhize.
Furthermore, he confirmed that during his tenure as TG of the ANC, Sodi, either directly or through its entities, made the following donations to the ANC (This information has been verified with the ANC Finance Office):
- 3 million rand – February 28, 2014
- 3.5 million rand – April 3, 2014
- 1.5 million rand – September 29, 2015
- 150,000 R – January 08, 2016
“Once again I categorically state that the above payments were deposited directly into the official ANC bank accounts, therefore I can only assume that the donor used the name Zweli Mkhize as a reference, given my capacity at the time as General Treasurer. Also, I want to emphasize that all the donations we received were voluntary, never transactional, nor linked to securing the government’s work, ”said Mkhize.
He said that apart from having singled out Sodi as a donor to the ANC during his tenure as TG, he has no personal, professional or business relationship with him.
“I have never been part of any of his businesses nor have I interacted with him on a personal level.
“I have also noted the foolish statement of the DA that he will inform the parliament because of these donations made to the ANC. In the process of doing so, it would assist the DA in attempting to properly understand the Rules of Parliament. At the time the ANC received these donations, I was the General Treasurer, with the specific role of raising funds for my Organization. I was not a member of Parliament and, in any case, I did not directly benefit from these donations from Mr Sodi. Therefore, there is no parliamentary requirement for me to declare all the donations the ANC received during my tenure as TG, ”said Mkhize.
He added that it is worth mentioning that when illegality and misconduct has been found, it should be investigated by law enforcement agencies.
“Matters related to Mr. Sodi and his companies are now before the courts. Therefore, this legal process must be allowed to run its course without being clouded by mischief and misinformation that carries people’s names, where there is no evidence. For my part, I make a serious exception to the insinuations, irresponsible and false comments made by some that I personally received money from Mr. Sodi. This offensive sensationalism can only be a sideshow to tarnish my name and in no way adds value to the work that law enforcement is doing, ”Mkhize said.
MESS
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