ANC CHIEF WHIP’S SON IN PPE WRANGLE

ANC chief whip Pemmy Majodina said yesterday that she was willing to appear before the ANC's integrity commission following a personal protective equipment (PPE) scandal involving her son.

Majodina said she was also willing to appear before a parliamentary ethics probe over the issue.

A newspaper report yesterday revealed that Majodina's son is the sole director of a company that was awarded R52 500 for the provision of thermometers for the ANC's parliamentary offices.

Majodina's son, Mkhonto weSizwe Majodina, is the sole director of the company King Mzimshe Trading, which is based in the Eastern Cape, the Sunday Times reported.

Yesterday, in a statement, Majodina said she regretted her son's involvement in the PPE procurement deal.

“ANC chief whip Pemmy Majodina regrets the involvement of her son Mkhonto weSizwe Majodina in the PPE Caucus procurement deal which supplied thermometers worth R52 500 to ANC constituency offices in January 2021,” her spokesperson, Nomfanelo Kota, said.

“The chief whip is aware that this may be reasonably perceived as a form of abuse of office and nepotism due to the proximity of her son.

“The chief whip reiterates her long-standing commitment to upholding the law.

“In her personal capacity, the chief whip has written to the ANC integrity commission to express her wish and willingness to voluntarily appear before it at its convenient time.

“Similarly, it is the intention of the chief whip to subject herself to a parliamentary ethics probe if and when called upon to do so to clear perceptions of any flouting of regulations,” Kota said.

The ANC's integrity commission chairperson, George Mashamba, could not be reached for comment yesterday to confirm whether the commission would be probing Majodina.

This is not the first PPE scandal to involve ANC members.

Former Gauteng health MEC Bandile Masuku and suspended Presidency spokesperson Khusela Diko were probed by the ANC's disciplinary committee following allegations of their involvement in PPE corruption.

Diko’s now deceased husband, Thandisizwe Diko, had been awarded a multimillion rand tender for the supply of PPE.