Senior African National Congress MP Peter Mokaba’s claims that the United States government gave $1-million to South African trade unions to distribute nevirapine in their structures was shot down this week by an NGO handling the donation, writes Jaspreet Kindra.
The head of the US-based Solidarity Centre, Fisseha Tekie, said the money was being used largely for HIV/Aids-prevention education programmes and had been approved by the South African national Department of Health.
US Health Secretary Tommy Thomson had announced the donation in South Africa recently.
Mokaba’s claims in City Press over the weekend coincided with the alliance summit, angering many delegates including senior ANC leaders. He was quoted as saying that the money had gone to the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu).
Speaking to the Mail & Guardian this week, Mokaba reiterated his claims, criticising US government officials for using South Africa as a “market” for “poisonous drugs”.
“First there was [former president] Jimmy Carter, then Tommy Thomson and then that congressman [Jim Kolbe] who are attempting to undermine the South African government.”
Both Carter and Kolbe, chairperson of the House of Representatives’ appropriations sub- committee with oversight over foreign operations, have been critical of the South African government’s handling of the Aids crisis.
Mokaba said: “We want money to create jobs, to alleviate poverty and to speed up transform- ation. We don’t want money to distribute poison.”
Viewed as divisive, Mokaba’s remarks were sharply criticised at the alliance summit.
He said this week he had been misquoted he had mentioned “South African trade unions”, not Cosatu, in his statement.
He said he would never do anything to undermine the summit or upset the alliance.
Senior ANC sources said many ministers, particularly those in the economic cluster, are concerned about the adverse publicity South Africa has been receiving abroad on the Aids issue. The ministers are said to be particularly concerned at the coverage Mokaba has received in the international press.
Mokaba recently featured in The New York Times proclaiming his views on “poisonous anti- retrovirals”.