EFF calls for removal of Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams from Cabinet for breaking lockdown regulations

8 April 2020

The EFF calls for the removal of Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams from cabinet for breaching lockdown regulations to have lunch with her friend. The two-month censure imposed on the Minister for breaching the lockdown is nonsensical and suggests that Ministers and Members of the Executive must be treated as if they are above the law.

Ordinary citizens are subjected to the full might of the law should they breach lockdown regulations. For one to have lunch with friends while our people observe the lockdown is insulting and undermining.

The attitude that Ministers are beyond reproach is a common trend in the Ramaphosa regime. We have seen it with Pravin Gordhan and we see it now with a Minister who has fundamentally undermined efforts to combat a global pandemic.

The Minister was seen on social media attending a lunch with a friend , a non-essential activity that is in contravention of the strict regulations set by the very Executive she sits on.

To lose a month's worth of salary and be put on leave is a slap on the wrist for a contravention that's mocks our collective efforts as a nation We call on the Minister of Police and SAPS to take the same action they have done with ordinary citizens who violated the regulations. No one should be above the law, particularly during this critical time of preventing the rapid spread of the Corona virus.

The EFF further calls for an investigation into the claims of one Mduduzi Manana, who claimed through his foundation that the Minister's visit related to acquiring Personal Protective Equipments to combat the spread of COVID-19. It is concerning that a sitting Minister can be summoned to a home of an individual for donations, while there are existing structures and mechanisms that coordinate donor efforts towards combating COVID-19.

Ministers must never meet self-purported philanthropists in their homes as these unofficial meetings lack transparency and are a dark road towards corruption.

We must guard against any elements that may seek to profit through this human disaster, under the guise of philanthropy and through the use of political connections.

We call for consistency within the Executive in abiding to lockdown regulations like all citizens, and further consistency in punishing Ministers who breach lockdown regulations by having luncheons, mini-rallies and providing aid for political expediency.

Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams must be removed from cabinet if the integrity of this national lockdown is to be maintained and the rule of law is to be taken seriously. There is no logical explanation for her to be treated with kids gloves while the masses of our people are subjected to the full might of the law.

Issued by Vuyani Pambo, National Spokesperson, EFF, 8 April 2020