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Public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane.
- The Public Protector’s investigation will continue, despite the ANC decision to reimburse the government for a flight to Zimbabwe.
- Lobbyist AfriForum views the ANC’s decision as an admission of “misappropriation of national assets.”
- A delegation from the ANC accaccompanied the defense minister on a SANDF military jet to Zimbabwe.
Defender of the Office of the Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane, says the ANC’s decision to reimburse the government for the flight to Zimbabwe does not affect the investigation into the use of a SANDF military aircraft by the political party.
“The Public Protector has yet to find out what happened and what should have happened, if there is a discrepancy between the two and, if so, how it should be remedied, to avoid a possible recurrence,” spokesman Oupa Segalwe told News24 on Friday.
“In addition, to direct the appropriate actions to be taken in the event that someone is found to have misbehaved.”
Segalwe said the matter is already being investigated.
READ | UPDATE | ANC to reimburse government for Zim trip of party delegation on air force jet
This comes after an ANC delegation flew to Harare, Zimbabwe, on a military plane to meet with Zanu-PF, amid mounting reports of an alleged human rights crisis in the neighboring country.
Travel
The PP received two complaints about the trip from the AfriForum pressure group and the Freedom Front Plus political party, in which it was asked to investigate the matter.
The ANC is accused of abusing state resources by using the government-sponsored plane to Zimbabwe.
READ ALSO: Mkhwebane considers investigating the use of a military aircraft for ANC trip to Zimbabwe
AfriForum, in a statement Tuesday, viewed the ANC’s announcement that it would pay for the use of the air force plane as an admission of misappropriation of domestic assets.
“AfriForum wants to know how the Defense Minister can somehow justify that this flight in an air force plane was in the public interest and we are still waiting for answers on whether the correct channels were followed,” said the head of AfriForum’s anti – Monique Taute Corruption Unit.
