Johannesburg - Dr Sbu Ndebele, the former KwaZulu-Natal premier and current ambassador to India, has denied social media reports that he complained about the KZN government spending more than R50 million on Mandla "Mampintsha" Maphumulo's funeral.
Last week, it was reported that the provincial government would fund a portion of the funeral costs as part of the province’s effort to facilitate a decent send-off for the kwaito and Qqom pioneer who died due to a stroke.
However, news on social media has put the price of the funeral costs at R50 million, which has also been denied by KwaZulu-Natal Premier, Nomusa Dube-Ncube.
Dube-Ncube has rubbished these claims, saying they were baseless. "It is very sad honestly that somebody would start such malicious rumours and information.
“There is no person, in his sane mind, who would have a funeral of that amount and not even a quarter of that amount. As government, we came in to support the family because we knew that the amount of people who were going to attend the funeral were going to be more than what the family would have been able to afford," Dube-Ncube said in a voice note message.
The premier subsequently issued a statement a week ago that the province and eThekwini municipality would meet Mampintsha’s family halfway in covering the funeral costs.
Dube-Ncube said the government spent R220 000 on the funeral.
"As a government, we only contributed R170 000 as the office of the Premier, as well as R50 000 from the Department of Sports, Arts, and Culture. And we have invoices and documents to prove that, and we can give a breakdown on where that particular amount was spent. We want to send that message to everyone. Let’s not spoil the good farewell that was given to our artist," the premier said.
In a statement issued by the Premier's office on Tuesday, KZN leadership detailed the funding provided to the family, saying it regretted having to respond to false rumours.
"Our regret arises from the fact that the family is still in a period of mourning and in line with Ubuntu. This period requires us to support and respect the family as they come to terms with the loss of their flesh and blood," the statement read.
Head of provincial government communication, Lennox Mabaso added his voice in rubbishing the rumours, saying they are nothing but a figment of imagination by those who are morally and spiritually bankrupt.
Ndebele has denied the social media reports attributed to him as fake, as he is not aware of anything that has to do with the government’s participation at the recent kwaito star’s funeral.
The Star