Uproar over Zuma’s ‘paltry’ $500,000 bill

South Africa president Jacob Zuma. South Africa’s opposition parties have described as ‘paltry’ and ‘an insult’ the $500,000 that Treasury says President Zuma should pay back for non-security upgrades on his private Nkandla home. PHOTO | AFP

What you need to know:

  • Opposition parties believe the $513,852 (Sh51.8m) bill was a ‘slap on the wrist’ for a project that ballooned to $23 million (Ksh2.3bn).
  • The Democratic Alliance called on President Zuma to repay the money immediately and out of his own pocket.
  • The United Democratic Movement said the amount the Treasury had determined that President Zuma should pay back was an insult.
  • The Congress of the People called the amount “daylight robbery”.

PRETORIA
South Africa’s opposition parties have described as ‘paltry’ and ‘an insult’ the $500,000 that Treasury says President Jacob Zuma should pay back for non-security upgrades on his private Nkandla home.

The Constitutional Court in March tasked the Treasury to calculate the “reasonable costs” of non-security upgrades that were implemented by the Department of Public Works.

The court gave Treasury 60 days to determine the calculation and ordered that the “president must personally pay the amount within 45 days”.

Hours before the deadline, Treasury announced President Zuma would have to pay $513,852 (51.8m) after contracting two independent quantity surveying firms to conduct two separate investigations. After the investigations, the Treasury then moderated the results of those two probes.

However, opposition parties believe the bill was a ‘slap on the wrist’ for a project that ballooned to $23 million (Ksh2.3bn).

The Democratic Alliance (DA) called on President Zuma to repay the money immediately and out of his own pocket. The United Democratic Movement (UDM) said the amount the Treasury had determined that President Zuma should pay back was an insult, while the Congress of the People (COPE) called it “daylight robbery”.

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi also said the recommended amount was not enough. “But most importantly, Zuma paying is an admission of guilt. The next step is criminal charges for benefiting, knowingly, from corruption.”

DA leader Mmusi Maimane said the fact that President Zuma was now legally obliged to repay some of the money spent on the upgrades was a step in the right direction. He said the amount was just over 3 per cent of the total spent.

ORIGINAL CORRUPTION NOT FORGOTTEN

“However, paying back the money does not mean the original corruption is forgotten. This is not the end of the road for Jacob Zuma and his corrupt cronies; it has only just began,” Mr Maimane said.
UDM leader Bantu Holomisa questioned the criteria used to determine the amount and said there should have been a forensic audit.

“We completely reject that and call on Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan not to buy face for Zuma. Not at the cost of the country,” he said.

COPE spokesperson Dennis Bloem suggested more money was wasted hiring experts to probe the matter than what President Zuma has been ordered to pay back.

“Never in the history of South Africa has one man directly cost the country so much with no benefit whatsoever to the people of our country.’’

If this figure stands, the South African leader will have gotten away with daylight robbery.”

The Inkatha Freedom Party chief whip, Mr Narend Singh, demanded a full breakdown of how the Treasury arrived at the amount.

The upgrades that were identified from the $23 million project were the visitors’ centre, amphitheatre, cattle kraal, chicken run and a swimming pool.

That was in line with the findings of Public Protector Thuli Madonsela in her report – Secure in Comfort – which was released more than two years ago and which has been the subject of a protracted dispute and controversy.