Covid19 Relief Fund for Artists Allegedly Stolen by Government Officials

• At a media briefing, Minister of Arts and Culture Nathi Mthethwa revealed the findings of a forensic investigation
• Mthethwa stated that around R300 million worth of funds intended to assist artists affected by Covid19 were stolen
• The accussed were five members of the National Arts Council who Mthethwa said would be brought to book

Coffers filled with millions in funds allocated for patrons from the world of arts and culture were pillaged.

Minister Nathi Mthethwa of the Arts and Culture department said on Monday, 27 September, following the conclusion of a forensic investigation that about R300 million worth of funds from the presidential employment stimulus programme.

The creation of employment and retention of work for those in the arts and culture sector who had their livelihoods affected by the Covid19 pandemic were meant to benefit from the stolen money.

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He gave the assurance that the five members of the National Arts Council implicated in the maladministration would be held accountable.

A cacophony of offences mounted against the council members including breaches of the Public Finance Management Act, according to Mail & Guardian. A report by 702FM revealed that the minister said that three of the implicated members were no longer officials in the department while two remain employed.

Duduzile Zuma slates ruling party by drawing parallels with the Apartheid regime

In other political news, Briefly News reported that Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, the daughter of former president Jacob Zuma, has taken to Twitter to once again vent her frustrations at the current state of the African National Congress (ANC) and its leadership.

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Dudu's tweet compared the state of the ANC under her father's care to the state the political party is currently in; linking the party's current state to the Apartheid regime.

Adamant about the reputation and public opinion of Zuma, Dudu has been relentless in her defence against those positioned against the former president while simultaneously attacking those who would her father. Below are some of the responses left by South African social media users:

@Thuso4u said:

"According to you. Under your dad, the ANC was run from Saxonworld."

@TebogoHammer wrote:

"That is very rich coming from you, your father didn't account for any impunity that took place during his dark and evil tenure, he only accounted to Atul."

@i_mohale shared:

"I sometimes wonder why Duduzile goes on with statements that prompt people to remember the evil of 9 wasted years. Does that girl know we are SAns and we still remember the evil that happened just yesterday? Jimmy, Carl and Dudu think alike."

Source: Briefly News