MMEMEZI MUST GO - HERE'S A PIC OF THE R10 000 BIG MAC PAINTING

The Democratic Alliance notes the report today that Gauteng Local Government and Housing MEC Humphrey Mmemezi will be fired this month when Premier Nomvula Mokonyane returns from an overseas trip to China.

We hope that this report is true as his firing is long overdue. It is now 41 days (see Mmemezi Monitor at www.da-gpl.co.za ) since the scandal first broke about his government credit card misspending, including the R10 000 painting he bought at a McDonald's restaurant in Pretoria.

The DA has obtained a photograph of this painting that hangs in his office (see below).

Mmemezi has given various explanations as to why he purchased it through a McDonald's branch, none of which are satisfactory. It seems that he reimbursed the government for the painting when the scandal broke, and he now says that it was a "donation".

There is no reason to delay his dismissal for this and other apparent scandals, including diverting R200 million from the human settlements conditional grant to pay exorbitant amounts to security and publishing companies instead of housing and associated infrastructure.

This includes R330 000 spent on security at Mmemezi's private home, and nearly R8 million on CCTV cameras for his office.

The premier should fire him from China. Mmemezi represents everything wrong with the ANC's policy of cadre deployment where incompetents are placed in office and retained even as scandal rages around them.

We need clean government in Gauteng and we need it now!

Statement issued by Jack Bloom MPL, DA Gauteng Caucus Leader, July 3 2012

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