By Celani Sikhakhane
- Cogta MEC Thulasizwe Buthelezi gave 35 new SUVs and bakkies to traditional leaders across KwaZulu-Natal in Durban this week again.
- MK Party’s KZN legislature leader, Inkosi Phathisizwe Chiliza, who accuses Buthelezi of using the scheme politically, accepted one of the vehicles.
This week, the MK Party’s own leader in the KZN Legislature accepted one of the government vehicles his party has spent months criticising.
Inkosi Phathisizwe Chiliza was not at the handover in Durban to collect his new SUV bakkie. His wife, Queen Noluthando Chiliza, collected it on his behalf. Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) MEC Reverend Thulasizwe Buthelezi handed it over, one of 35 vehicles given to traditional leaders this week as part of a programme worth close to R20 million, meant to give traditional leaders tools of trade to do their work.
The MK Party has criticised the scheme at the KZN Legislature. The party has also questioned whether Buthelezi is using the rollout to campaign for the IFP ahead of the local government elections.
Buthelezi has rejected those claims.
He said the vehicles were not budgeted for. The money came from savings elsewhere in government, he said.
“Through this sustained investment, KZN Cogta continues to deepen its partnership with Amakhosi to advance responsive governance and uplift rural communities across all corners of KZN,” he said.
The first phase of the programme, earlier this year, gave vehicles to about 30 traditional leaders. This week’s handover brought 35 more traditional leaders into the programme.
The Democratic Alliance has also called for an investigation into how the vehicles were funded and allocated.
Pictured above: Queen Noluthando Chiliza receiving the new SUV from Cogta on behalf of her husband, MK Party legislature leader Inkosi Phathisizwe Chiliza.
Image source: KZNCOGTA
