Durban - Despite being staunch critics of the costly upgrades to President Jacob Zuma’s Nkandla homestead, the DA did not feel threatened by prospects of intimidation and violence by Zuma’s defenders.
This was the stance of DA leader Mmusi Maimane, speaking after delivering a speech at the Sharks Board offices in Umhlanga on Tuesday night.
He said: “Just because things get a bit difficult does not mean that the cause is left. We believe that President Zuma unduly benefited and must pay back a portion of the money.”
Parliament’s special Nkandla committee will spend two hours on Wednesday inspecting the upgrades to Zuma’s homestead.
This follows a briefing on Tuesday by Police Minister Nathi Nhleko on his report which dismissed the need for any repayments by the president.
The DA, Freedom Front Plus and IFP are among the opposition parties expected to visit Nkandla.
Maimane said his party supporters would definitely be in Nkandla on Wednesday.
“It doesn’t matter what happens. We are not nervous about anything. We are not bullied. We can’t sit here and simply say to ourselves that President Zuma must get away with this. We will do what we need to do,” he said.
In November 2012, DA supporters, led by former leader Helen Zille, clashed with ANC supporters who prevented them from visiting Zuma’s home.
Maimane said the inspection of Zuma’s home on Wednesday was “absolutely necessary” to refute Nhleko’s “unconstitutional” report.
Also, he said, courts must be able to say “you have exercised all your avenues”.
“We think the minister of police’s report is unconstitutional, it is biased in that he supports his leader. We are simply not going to accept the report,” he said.
“People think you need to be a security expert to decide if a swimming pool can become a fire pool. You don’t need to be a gynaecologist to decide if someone is pregnant, you can see the evidence for yourself.”
He was hopeful “common sense will prevail”.
Despite the truth-finding mission, he was adamant he knew “the truth” of who should be held responsible for the construction of Zuma’s home.
“We should know how those tenders were decided, but, you know, I think I have a pretty good idea who gave the instruction. It wasn’t imagined. It wasn’t an act of nature. I think, frankly, it was Number 1.”
The DA also said it would conduct an alternative oversight visit to the towns and villages in and around Nkandla where ordinary residents lived.
“The DA delegation will assess the standard of living of those in Nkandla who lead ordinary lives, in contrast to the palatial and extravagant private home of President Zuma that the Nkandla ad hoc committee members will be overseeing at the same time,” the party has said.
It would also conduct oversight of the R135 million SANDF housing project built to house soldiers stationed at Zuma’s home.
Not all opposition parties sit on the parliamentary ad hoc committee. The EFF and Cope have already withdrawn from the previous Nkandla ad hoc committee.
Cope has called on opposition party members of the committee to boycott the visit to Nkandla.
Its spokesman, Dennis Bloem, said the visit was “a mere ploy” to sanction further expenditure on the president’s homestead at Nkandla.
“We want to tell our colleagues in the opposition parties that their participation in this ad hoc committee will inevitably contribute to the undermining of the constitution as well as the chapter nine institutions. In particular, it will weaken the office of the public protector.”
The Mercury