Nkandla tuck shock
2013-02-03 11:08
Adriaan Basson, City Press
Durban - Included in the government’s R206m splurge on President Jacob Zuma’s Nkandla compound is a tuck shop built for
First Lady Sizakele Khumalo’s use.
City Press can reveal that the department of
public works paid a contractor to build a brand-new tuck shop for MaKhumalo.
This challenges Public Works Minister Thulas
Nxesi’s contention that government only spent money on security upgrades and
operational measures at Nkandla.
MaKhumalo is Zuma’s first wife and has been
running a tuck shop and vegetable garden at Nkandla for years.
The website of her Mashobane Foundation
states that she “presides over the homestead in Nkandla, where she is often
seen among ordinary rural South Africans”.
“She is active in the community, and her
interest is agriculture and food security. She runs a vegetable garden and a
tuck shop in Nkandla.”
Open secret
A high-level source with knowledge of the
Nkandlagate splurge told City Press it was an open secret that the new tuck
shop built at the president’s homestead was for the private use of his first
wife.
At last week’s press conference on the
scandal, Nxesi was at pains to defend Zuma’s hands-off role in the process and
said there was “no evidence” that public money was spent to build the “private
residence” of the president. But Nxesi said nothing about the new tuck shop.
In an official public works progress report,
dated 5 November 2010, the cost for the construction of a “guard house, bin and
tuck shop” was estimated to be R586?467.
Neither of Zuma’s spokespersons responded to
questions this week.
Nxesi’s legal adviser, Phillip Masilo, said
disclosing information about a National Key Point was “outside the normal
standard”.
He didn’t respond to specific questions on
why the state was paying for a building upgrade that clearly benefits Zuma’s
family.
Masilo said: “After the security assessments
and threat analysis by the security agents, the department of public works was
required to implement the recommendations in line with the assessment.
No comment
“We cannot comment on the allegations as we
do not have knowledge of the documents to which you are referring.”
Nxesi has refused to release his full report.
Companies contracted on the project this week
denied any wrongdoing. Nxesi announced his task team discovered irregularities
in the appointment of service providers and in procurement processes.
These were referred to the Special
Investigating Unit, Auditor-General and the police to investigate.
