Dhabi
17 January 2006
In response to ongoing media speculation The Presidency wishes to further
clarify matters relating to the visit of the Deputy President to Abu Dhabi in
December. The Presidency hopes that this will ensure that the matter is
discussed on the basis of fact rather than speculative political
point-scoring.
As The Presidency indicated in its statement of 10 January 2006, the Deputy
President undertook a private visit to the United Arab Emirates from 27
December to 31 December 2005.
It was further explained that the state takes full responsibility for the
provision of transport and security for the President and Deputy President - as
well as associated costs - irrespective of whether they are on official or
private travels. The movement of the President and Deputy President is the
responsibility of both The Presidency and the South African Police Service
(SAPS) and the President and Deputy President do not themselves decide on the
manner or modalities of movement. The modalities are determined on the basis of
security, cost and convenience. In this instance, the responsible officials
made the required determinations and in particular with respect to the
provision of security, South African National Defence Force (SANDF) air
transport was considered to be the most appropriate.
As has been consistently stated, the visit was a private one and the Deputy
President was on leave. However, the Deputy President was aware of developments
in Abu Dhabi from which lessons could be drawn relevant to Accelerated Shared
Growth Initiative of South Africa (ASGI-SA), in particular with regard to the
management of large infrastructure projects and the empowerment of women in
this field. She wished to take the opportunity to learn from these developments
while on holiday.
It was in this context that she invited a friend, Ms Thuthukile
Mazibuko-Skweyiya, to accompany her. Ms Mazibuko-Skweyiya is contributing on a
voluntary basis to the development of a programme within ASGI-SA for the
development of project management skills for infrastructure projects with a
particular focus on the empowerment of women. She is also a member of the Joint
Initiative for Priority Skills Acquisition for South Africa (JIPSA).
In the group visiting Abu Dhabi with the Deputy President, her spouse and
two children, apart from the standard detail of security, medical staff and
personal assistant, and making up her entourage on the SANDF aircraft with her,
were Ms Mazibuko-Skweyiya and two children of the personal assistant. The
Deputy President had decided that in this holiday period, the human thing for
her to do was to take her Personal Assistant's children along so that they
could be with their mother.
During the stay in Abu Dhabi there were no formal appointments but they
visited various buildings and sites, under the guidance of the South African
Ambassador to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), as well as a public exhibition on
infrastructure development.
As is standard practice, the costs of vacation accommodation and other
related costs other than those of transport to the destination and protection,
are the responsibility of and for the account of the principals themselves. In
this instance, on the Deputy President's arrival at the pre-booked hotel, the
Emir of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) insisted that the UAE government should
accommodate her and the party at the government guest-house. The UAE government
also provided transport and covered incidental costs for the duration of the
visit.
Whilst acknowledging the media's watchdog role, it needs to be stressed that
in no respect did the Deputy President - or those who took the decisions
regarding the modalities of travel to Abu Dhabi - infringe any law, regulation
or policy prescript. The Deputy President is firmly committed to good
governance, transparency and the rule of law, and therefore pays serious
attention to public concerns that are raised regarding such matters.
Enquiries:
Murphy Morobe
Cell: 082 463 9334
Issued by: The Presidency
17 January 2006
Source: SAPA
