FRIDAY, 8.00AM
HOUSING director general Billy Cobbett, who has arrived at work each day this week, will finally know his fate today, after mediation between himself, housing minister Sankie Mthembi-Mahanyele and public service officials.
In a debate on the Cobbett affair in parliament yesterday, Mthembi-Mahanyele evaded demands from the Democratic Party’s Douglas Gibson that she table Cobbett’s alleged letter of resignation. She said she had given Cobbett the go-ahead to investigate the irregular award of a contract to Motheo Construction, run by a friend of hers — contradicting her statement of a week ago. She also said that Cobbett had admitted to making mistakes.
Mthembi-Mahanyele denied charges of nepotism in the award of an Mpumalanga building contract, saying that the constitution prevented her from interfering in provincial matters.
She said it was not unusual to award contracts to companies that had not yet been registered, and accused her critics of racism.