Call for probe into mayor’s R3,5 million trip to Zambia
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WYNDHAM HARTLEY
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Published:
2009/11/27 06:30:14 AM
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CAPE TOWN — Lavish spending by the mayor of OR Tambo District Municipality in the Eastern Cape on a trip to Zambia for 200 people should be investigated by the public protector and repaid if it was found to have been unauthorised and fruitless expenditure, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said yesterday.
The request from DA MP Willem Doman follows reports that mayor Zoleka Capa spent R3,5m on a trip to Lusaka last month to attend Zambia’s independence day and a remembrance celebration for former African National Congress (ANC) leader OR Tambo.
Reports last weekend said buses carrying the 200 delegates were followed by the mayoral car and a bakkie loaded with food and refreshments for the travellers.
“The R3,15m spent by mayor Capa certainly does not appear to fall into the of legitimate municipal expenditure,” Doman said. “The funds were apparently put towards accommodating Capa and her family in the Intercontinental Hotel in Lusaka, while the over 200 accompanying delegates were put up in other hotels. This is in spite of the fact that the OR Tambo district (centred on Mthatha and including several rural Eastern Cape towns ) suffers a serious lack of basic services .”
He said Capa also had her official car, a Mercedes ML320, driven to Lusaka and back so she could use it while she was there. She and her husband and two daughters flew to Lusaka.
“The ANC deployed mayor Zoleka Capa and the 11 councillors involved, and should take full responsibility for their behaviour. Nothing other than the replacement of the mayor and councillors involved would be sufficient. This wasteful expenditure is inexcusable, especially in these times of economic hardship affecting the whole country.
“Action should be taken urgently as this is not the first time mayor Capa has spent fruitlessly. It has been reported that OR Tambo Municipality recently spent R45m on buying farms in other provinces, which have fallen into a state of decay and now need further funding.
“All of these matters point … to an ANC government that simply refuses to make expenditure on service delivery a priority.”