EFF calls for inquiry into South Africa’s Ingonyama Trust
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Scrolla
South Africa’s EFF party is calling for an independent investigation into the Ingonyama Trust’s financial management and accuses its board of holding a summit in Durban without King Misuzulu kaZwelithini’s approval. The board has pledged to respond to the complaints within seven days and says it will remain in office until its term ends in five months, Scrolla reported.
South Africa’s Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party has called for an independent investigation into the financial management of the Ingonyama Trust, which manages traditional land in KwaZulu-Natal. The call concerns, among other things, a summit held in Durban without the approval of King Misuzulu kaZwelithini, according to South African media outlet Scrolla.
EFF leader in the KwaZulu-Natal provincial parliament Mongezi Thwala handed a list of complaints to the trust’s acting chief executive, Siyamdumisa Vilakazi, during a protest on Wednesday in Pietermaritzburg. The investigation sought by the party would cover accounts since 1 April 2021, meetings at the Durban convention centre, purchases, remuneration, legal and consultancy fees, loans, grants and land allocations.
The EFF also wants the investigation to identify those who authorised and received the disputed payments and to check whether the corresponding work was carried out. Vilakazi said the board would respond to the list within seven days, Scrolla reported.
The call follows a dispute between the trust’s board and the Minister of Land Reform and Rural Development, Mzwanele Nyhontso. He called the board “rogue” and asked the king for permission to dissolve it. The board says a court ruling on 26 March allows it to remain in office until its term ends in five months, according to Scrolla.
Summary produced with the help of artificial intelligence tools, under AFREEQUE’s editorial responsibility.
