KZN speaker quits over media
2003-10-01 16:18
Johannesburg - KwaZulu-Natal legislature deputy speaker Willies Mchunu said on Wednesday he had stepped down because he did not believe the negative publicity surrounding allegations against him befitted him occupying his position.
His decision came on Tuesday after provincial auditor general Barry Wheeler issued a report on the KwaZulu-Natal legislature's affairs.
The report found Mchunu's state-issued Mercedes Benz was involved in an accident, but no accident report was completed as required.
Mchunu, an African National Congress MP and KwaZulu-Natal chairman of the South African Communist Party (SACP), was hospitalised after the accident.
In office as deputy speaker for the past nine years, Mchunu told the provincial parliament members on Tuesday: "In the interests of due process and without admission of any wrong doing on my part, I offer to stand down as deputy speaker of this legislature until finalisation of the enquiry into my conduct."
"I have only stepped down as deputy speaker but I am still a member of parliament. I am in charge of rules of the house. How would I be able to secure respect and integrity of parliament if I occupied the position with the allegations hanging over my head?" he said in an interview with a Sapa correspondent on Wednesday.
Mchunu said he had decided to step down even though his peers in the ANC and SACP had asked him to stay until an inquiry absolved him.
"I believe the negativity attached to the allegations will bring bad publicity to the ANC and SACP. I don't want to be party to embarrassing the ANC... At first the parties were reluctant to accept my decision and then they eventually agreed," he said.
Other findings against Mchunu in the report include allegations that between April 2001 and January 2002, he and the speaker's personal assistant Bonga Mdletshe, ran up cellphone bills of R6 900 and R31 980 respectively.
The report also said that from March 1999 to July 2000, Mdletshe used 15 new tyres on his state-issued car at a cost of R16,818. During this time he had only travelled about 25 710km and an additional R50 465 was spent on repairs and services on that vehicle.
Inkhata Freedom Party (IFP) spokesperson Blessed Gwala said Mdlesthe, a member of the IFP, would not step down as he was presumed to be innocent until proven guilty.
"Mchunu's decision was like a bolt out of the blue. He had done everything to follow his conscience. Only he knows what his conscience is. A person is innocent until proven guilty. Even deputy president Jacob Zuma, despite the publicity around him, is entitled to stay in his position until proven otherwise," Gwala said.
ANC spokesperson Mtolephi Mthimkulu told Sapa that Mchunu's decision was an honourable and unprecedented move.
"The step taken by Mchunu is vital. If allegations are hanging over your head, one should step aside to give the process a chance," Mthimkulu said.
He would not comment on how this view related to Zuma, who is facing allegations of corruption linked to the government's multi-million rand arms deal but has declined to step down.
Wheeler's report implicating Mchunu will be followed by an inquiry to determine whether the allegations against him are true.
The report has also recommended that the KwaZulu-Natal legislature's chief executive officer Robert Mzimela, who is presently suspended, be fired and a disciplinary inquiry be instituted against his deputy, Joe Mkhize.
- SAPA