Ndebele gifts still not collected
2009-05-26 12:46
Durban - Transport Minister Sbu Ndebele is waiting for the contractors to collect all the gifts they gave him, his adviser Dr Kwazi Mbanjwa said on Tuesday.
The presents included a R1.14m Mercedes-Benz.
The decision by a group of about 30 KwaZulu-Natal contractors to present Ndebele with expensive gifts two weeks ago sparked huge criticism, prompting Ndebele to announce last Tuesday that he would return them.
On Tuesday, The Mercury quoted one of the contractors, Mandla Biyela, as saying Ndebele had not yet returned the items.
Biyela said if Ndebele formally approached them to take back the gifts, they would.
Contractors must collect gifts
Mbanjwa however said the minister was waiting for the contractors to collect them.
"Our understanding is that they are the ones who are supposed to collect the gifts. We discussed this issue when I spoke to them immediately after the minister announced that he would return the gifts. They have to pick up the gifts," said Mbanjwa.
The contractors were not immediately available to comment.
They were members of Vukuzakhe, a development programme established by Ndebele when he was still transport MEC in KwaZulu-Natal.
On May 16, the contractors threw a lavish party for Ndebele in Pietermaritzburg to thank him for creating a platform for small contractors.
In addition to the car, Ndebele also received cows, cutlery, a plasma TV and petrol vouchers. They were believed to be at Ndebele's Pietermaritzburg home.
- SAPA