South African minister denied three months pay over use of Air Force plane for trip to Zimbabwe

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has slashed three months’ pay from the Defence Minister who allowed the African National Congress (ANC) party members to fly on an air force plane to Zimbabwe early in September.

Ms Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula’s decision came under sharp criticism by opposition leaders who saw the lift as a misuse of public resources.

Mapisa-Nqakula had a scheduled meeting in Harare aimed at discussing regional issues while the delegation from ANC was going to meeting with Zimbabwe’s ruling party ZANU-PF intending to deal with the country’s economic and political grief.

President Ramaphosa sanctions on Mapisa-Nqakula come after she was found guilty of “error of judgement”.

Her three-month salary will now go to the Solidarity Fund for Covid-19. The ANC party will also be required to pay for the flight of each delegate who hitchhiked the rode to Zimbabwe.

However, the punishment has been seen by others as a slap on the wrist as critics call for heavier penalties for the defence minister while others calling for her dismissal.

President Ramaphosa came to power on the promise of crushing the tower of corruption that has shielded the country from the light of healthy economic and social progress.