Nyakallo Tefu
Communications Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams has landed in hot water for allegedly breaking government lockdown rules after pictures of her tucking into a fancy family lunch at the home of ANC NEC member Mduduzi Manana went viral on social media.
The family lunch pictures, which were posted by Manana on popular social media platform Instagram, has set off a wave of backlash, with many Twitter and Facebook users accusing the two senior ANC heavyweights of failing to lead by example during the lockdown period.
In a caption, Manana wrote on Instagram: “It was great to host a former colleague and dear sister Cde Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams (Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies) on her way back from executing critical and essential services required for the effective functioning of our country during the nationwide lockdown.”
Manana has since issued an apology for undermining government regulations such as social distancing in order to contain the spread of the deadly coronavirus, which has already claimed 13 lives and infected at least 1 686 people in the country.
Manana said when he learnt that Ndabeni-Abrahams was in Fourways to visit a site where students are said to be working on COVID-19 Digital Services, he invited her to a family lunch at his home.
“On her arrival, my family was having lunch and I courteously invited her to join us. She then collected the material and headed to her next assignment. She took the first batch for the Fourways students and indicated that the next visit will be tomorrow (April 8) at the Menlyn site which our team will be delivering. In hindsight, it was irresponsible to post a picture without a clear context and thereby creating the impression that it was a social lunch. For this I profusely apologise,” Manana said.
President Cyril Ramaphosa told journalists in Johannesburg that he has seen Instagram pictures of the Communications Minister with Manana at the family lunch in Fourways and has since summoned her to the Union Buildings to explain herself.
Ramaphosa was in Johannesburg to visit Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation COVID-19 Command Centre at the Rand Water offices.
“I have seen the picture of Minister Ndabeni-Abrahams sitting at a luncheon with friends and have asked her to come and see me so that we can discuss the impact of visuals like these,” said a deeply concerned Ramaphosa.
“What we are trying, what we want to do. We want to instil a clear message about social distancing, that you must stay at home and don’t go around on visitations.”
Twitter users went ballistic on Tuesday morning after seeing social media pictures of the Communications Minister failing to comply with social distancing measures during the lockdown.
An irate Twitter user @Anele_2013 tweeted: “If she doesn’t go to jail after meeting with the President Cyril Ramaphosa, then I demand everyone who has been arrested for social distancing to also meet with the president and go home. Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams must be arrested.”
Meanwhile, Democratic Alliance’s MP and Shadow Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies Phumzile van Damme has called on Ramaphosa to lay a criminal complaint against Ndabeni-Abrahams and go a step further by removing her from his Cabinet.
“President Ramaphosa addressed the nation twice asking South Africans to obey the law while containment strategies for Covid-19 were being implemented. The majority of the people of our country have done so with diligence. Many have lost jobs and incomes while staying at home as he requested. Some have been brutalized by security forces for not obeying the law,” said van Damme.
“He cannot expect that in these circumstances a mere slap on the wrist will suffice. Ndabeni-Abrahams must go!”
