The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (Dirco) says it is preparing to respond to a court application by lobby group AfriForum to stop a R50-million donation to Cuba.
On Tuesday, the High Court in Pretoria granted the lobby group an interim interdict barring the government from proceeding with the transaction.
Last year, the announcement about the hefty donation drew strong criticism from civil groups and some political parties.
International Relations Minister, Naledi Pandor, says they have sought legal counsel to respond to the upcoming hearing.
She’s also clarified that the donation will not be monetary.
Pandor provides clarity in the tweeted video below:
STATEMENT | The Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Dr. Naledi Pandor, has this morning, reacted to yesterday’s Court Ruling, regarding South Africa’s humanitarian aid to Cuba. 23 March 2022. cc @ClaysonMonyela @UbuntuRadioZA @SAgovnews pic.twitter.com/3tiQtCkIyl
— DIRCO South Africa (@DIRCO_ZA) March 23, 2022
Interdict to overturn the decision
AfriForum is expected to file an application next month to seek to have the decision to give the Caribbean nation the gift overturned or found unlawful.
In a statement, AfriForum’s Campaign Officer Reiner Duvenage said: “We are pleased that we have managed to stop this unlawful and shameful donation in its tracks. We are now optimistic that our review application will succeed in making a final end to the matter. AfriForum pledges to continue its fight against outrageous and wasteful expenditure which is squandering taxpayers’ money.”
In the video tweet below, Duvenage explains details of the court interdict:
BREAKING: @afriforum today successfully obtained an urgent interdict against the government’s R50 million donation to Cuba. We will continue to fight against the squandering of taxpayers’ money!
VICTORY IS SWEET! pic.twitter.com/qABLuVvV3S
— Reiner Duvenage (@reiner_duvenage) March 22, 2022
