Official under Twitter fire over high-end accommodation
A TWEET attempting to justify expensive overseas travel for secretary to parliament Gengezi Mgidlana has backfired on officials‚ with South Africans sharing their own basic travel tips and a clear message sent in many different words: “Get real.”
“For example a basic hotel accommodation service which costs R1 300 for bedbreakfast in South Africa could cost about R23 000 per day in London [sic]‚” the Parliament of RSA account said.
The statement was in defence of Mgidlana after a City Press report that he stayed in a R14 050-a-night room (R42 150 for three nights) at the luxurious Conrad London St James Hotel and spent R44 320 on being chauffeur-driven in Budapest‚ Hungary. Public reaction was scathing. “On http://bookings.com there are 1 310 results‚ 1 300 are below R23 000. Stop wasting our tax money!!!‚” said N Block ?@The–Blockster.
Geordin Hill-Lewis shared a link to a luxury hotel that cost far less than parliament’s budgeting‚ saying: “Here‚ for example‚ is The Radisson on Oxford Street in London (great location). 4 stars. R3 300 a night.”
Kops M ?@KopsM said “The travel agent was looting recklessly”‚ while Katleho ?@Katle–SA was succinct: “Should be investigated.”
Koketso Moeti ?@Kmoeti shared his Google search results for London hotels‚ advising the parliamentary team‚ “because I’m not sure what y’all are having to be paying such prices”.
Babes weGinger ?@CJSteyl was on the same page‚ sharing: “Ever heard of Trivago? Trip Advisor? Google? Don’t come here to fool us shem . . . we know things.”
Sphe ?@Peabss was sceptical‚ commenting: “This is tenderpreneur mathematics. Pay R3 000 then keep R20k for yourself.”
I am an African ?@Clint–ZA did a pound price check: “A King Superior room is available at the Conrad London St James for £299‚ why is STP paying £799?“
“The series of tweets by @ParliamentofRSA on claimed hotel costs in London demonstrate how the @MYANC takes all citizens for fools!”
Frequent traveller Shahrina ?@sramphaul commented: “Wow‚ really? I’ve been to London many times‚ never paid R23K a day. Did u type an extra zero in error?”
Thando ?@ThandoKM checked up on the claim‚ then shared: “@ParliamentofRSA I’m on page 3 of http://Booking.com and I’m yet to find a R23k a night hotel in London.”
Parliament‚ in a statement on Sunday, claimed that articles querying the cost of travel were part of “efforts aimed at denigrating the standing of the secretary to parliament (STP)‚ hoping to derail the programme of remodelling and repositioning this institution to be able to lead good governance from the front‚ as it has begun turning the corner with a clean audit finding by the auditor-general.”
It also hit out at criticism that the pricy travel came in a year when parliament was not paying workers’ bonuses for the first time since 1994.
The parliament statement said assertions that costs of the official trips to international partners of parliament were very high‚ it said‚ negated “the applicable randpound exchange rates that any South African gets subjected to when visiting London or other European countries”.
DA chief whip John Steenhuisen was unimpressed: “When @ParliamentofRSA twitter account starts to justify this gross extravagance on luxury items for one man . . . so much for ‘we the people!’ ”