ANC top brass who took a taxpayer-funded junket in a South African Air Force jet to Harare this week ignored level 2 lockdown regulations, raising fresh questions about President Cyril Ramaphosa's cleanup of party and state.
The department of home affairs said yesterday it would investigate whether the passengers that flew to Harare breached national lockdown rules.
Home affairs minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi instructed his officials to conduct the probe on Thursday - a day after the ANC delegation landed back at Waterkloof Air Force Base in Pretoria.
The investigation was confirmed by Motsoaledi's spokesperson, Siya Qoza, yesterday. "The minister is unable to fully respond to your questions at this stage as the matter is still under internal investigation within the department," said Qoza.
It is unclear how much Ramaphosa knew about the visit, which was discussed at a meeting two weeks ago of the ANC's national executive committee (NEC) at which he took a hard line on looting of state resources.
Ramaphosa broke his silence on Friday night, demanding a report from defence minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, whose plane the ANC leaders, led by secretary-general Ace Magashule, used to get to Harare.
The party denied that hitching a ride on the plane was an abuse of taxpayer funds, and claimed the visit was in the national interest, but it has emerged that the delegation did not apply for permission to leave the country, which is strictly controlled under lockdown regulations.
And the requirement that they quarantine for 10 days after travelling abroad was also ignored by several of them. Social media pictures showed a member of the delegation, social development minister Lindiwe Zulu, socialising just days after the trip.
Two of the leaders on the trip chose to self-quarantine.
The incident has embarrassed Ramaphosa's government, with critics slamming it as a blatant abuse of power and state resources by his party.
The incident happened under the nose of Ramaphosa's all-powerful National Coronavirus Command Council, the structure that advises the cabinet on measures to take to contain Covid-19, and whose decrees have put hundreds of thousands of South Africans at odds with the law, and left them facing legal action in the courts.
Under level 2, the country's borders remain closed and ordinary citizens such as Magashule, who does not hold a government post, can travel out of the country only after obtaining permission from authorities do so.
It appears the move to hop on the military jet may have exploited a loophole to avoid the administrative paperwork required by the department of transport.
What is also certain to fuel criticism of the trip is the revelation that the meeting between Mapisa-Nqakula and Zimbabwe 's defence & war veterans minister, Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri, did not last even an hour.
Mapisa-Nqakula is listed as an ANC delegate on the list of visitors, though a defence spokesperson claimed this week that the reason for her visit to Zimbabwe was for scheduled discussions as part of Southern African Development Community business.
A Luthuli House insider, familiar with discussions in the ANC top six, said the trip was discussed at a meeting of the party's top officials, including Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa's acting spokesperson, Tyrone Seale, would not say yesterday whether Ramaphosa knew the ANC delegation had planned to hitch a ride on a state plane.
He only confirmed that Ramaphosa had granted permission for Mapisa-Nqakula to travel to Zimbabwe. Asked directly whether the president knew about the arrangement with Magashule and his team, Seale undertook to find out. He did not respond to further calls and messages.
Members of the ANC delegation who the Sunday Times approached for comment would not say if they received permission to travel. Magashule declined to comment and referred questions to Mapisa-Nqakula's office. He did, however, insist that he did not believe that his delegation had abused state resources.
Zulu declined to comment on whether she had received permission to travel. She referred queries to the defence department.
She posted a picture with Kaizer Chiefs football club manager Bobby Motaung on her Instagram page on Friday, showing she was not self-isolating as required by level 2 regulations.
Top ANC official and former minister Nomvula Mokonyane said the trip was organised by Luthuli House.
"I was called as part of a delegation of the ANC, so everything that was organised for the trip was done through the ANC... the department of international relations of the ANC has been the one that was responsible," said Mokonyane.
The ANC and the government should be answering questions, she said.
"I am not saying there was never a requirement [to apply for a permit], all those details were organised through the ANC."
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Mokonyane is neither in quarantine nor self-isolating after the trip, and told the Sunday Times during her telephonic interview that she was going into a store.
Enoch Godongwana, head of the NEC subcommittee on economic transformation, said he had received an invitation from Magashule to travel to Harare.
He said he was now quarantining at home "as we speak".
ANC spokesperson Dakota Legoete also said he was quarantining. He did not respond when asked whether he had permission to travel and work outside the country.
By hitching with Mapisa-Nqakul on an SANDF flight, the ANC delegation escaped complying with international regulations.
According to the level 2 regulations, flights can only leave the country with the permission of transport minister Fikile Mbalula.
But according to Ayanda-Allie Paine, Mbalula's spokesperson, this regulation does not extend to South African National Defence Force aircraft. Home affairs minister Motsoaledi also has the authority to permit entry or exit from the country.
In terms of the Defence Act, Mapisa- Nqakula can authorise the conveyance of private citizens in consultation with finance minister Tito Mboweni.
The Defence Act provides that "if it is in the public interest, or in the case of an emergency, the minister [of defence] after consultation with the Minister of Finance, may authorise the conveyance of any person who is not an officer or employee of the state acting in the execution of his or her duty as such, or any goods belonging to such person, by means of any vehicle, aircraft or vessel belonging to the department".
Mboweni's spokesperson, Mashudu Masutha, declined to comment yesterday, and referred questions to the presidency.
Defence spokesperson Siphiwe Dlamini would not say whether the senior ANC members had the required permission to travel under level 2, referring that question to the party.
He said the incident was not a common occurrence.
One has to look at the circumstances under which it happened in this period and time of the challenges that have a direct impact on South Africa
— National treasury spokesperson Mashudu Masutha
"One has to look at the circumstances under which it happened in this period and time of the challenges that have a direct impact on South Africa," he said.
DA MP Kobus Marais said Mapisa-Nqakula usually travels in the air force's Falcon 550, which can take up to eight people.
This time around she used the Falcon 900, which can take up to 18 people. The cost of travelling in this plane is a lot higher.
"On the other side we've got a defence force and air force whose budgets have been cut to the bone, to the extent that the flying hours are being restricted and have been reduced," Marais said.
International relations spokesperson Lunga Ngqengelele said his department was not involved in processing the ANC delegation.
"We don't do that in terms of the ANC [share a note verbale, or diplomatic communication, with the host country]; it was party to party, the ANC made its own arrangements.
"As a country we are not involved, people are allowed to travel as they wish… it's a private matter that involves nongovernmental organisations," said Ngqengelele.
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