Politicians take time out

ANC deputy president Jacob Zuma will be opening his Christmas presents and kissing his numerous wives under the mistletoe at his homestead in Nkandla, northern KwaZulu-Natal, the Mail & Guardian has established.

One assumes President Thabo Mbeki will not be among the guests. Mbeki is on holiday, but at a hide-away so secret that even his spokesperson, Mukoni Ratshitanga, claims not to know where it is.

‘Getting hold of him at this time is impossible,” Ratshitanga explained.

There was slightly more information about the holiday plans of Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, who will be in the Eastern Cape with her family. ‘I don’t have details, but she will be back on duty in the second week of January,” said her spokesperson, Thabang Chiloane.

Land Affairs Minister Lulu Xingwana is waiting to start a Cape Town holiday, delayed, she says, by the pressing land issues cluttering her desk. ‘I’ve had a very hectic year, and I like Cape Town because it’s quiet. I also like going to the beach and waiting for the fireworks.”

Cape Town mayor Helen Zille, will only take her holiday, at Keurbooms-river, in Plettenberg Bay, in the first fortnight of the new year. ‘I’m going with my husband and two sons. I’ll be reading books that I haven’t had time to read during the year and watching my first DVD on a computer screen.”

Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula will also be sheltering at a secret holiday destination. Said his spokesperson, Trevor Bloem: ‘He’s out of reach and that is primarily because he had a very stressful year and we would like him to rest.” Asked how the minister planned to relax, Bloem said: ‘He enjoys his music; anything from choral to jazz. He also enjoys hiking and hunting.”

Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi told the M&G he was off to the Eastern Cape ‘with four brothers, seven sisters and countless other family members”. ‘Christmas is always about slaughtering a cow and enjoying the occasion. This year has been a tough year for me and I’m looking forward to just resting.”

New Year would be spent with ‘a couple of close friends — we’ll be trying to get away from the masses”.

Scorpions boss Vusi Pikoli says he and his wife will visit friends and family members. ‘This weekend we will be seeing my mother, but after that everybody will go his or her own way. Our kids will be doing their own thing because they’re older now. Sadly, my phone can’t be off because I’m constantly on duty.”

Chuckling, he added: ‘My New Year’s wish is for me and a news editor to swap jobs for six months, so they can see how hard my job is. Please pass that on to (M&G editor) Ferial Haffajee.”

Minister of Public Service and Administration Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi is also planning a family Christmas, with ‘a big Christmas lunch where all the Frasers get together”. The extended family would travel through KwaZulu-Natal to Maputo after Day of Goodwill, where they would spend ‘a couple of days, probably in a hotel”.