He was confident he would not be found wanting in any investigation about financial support to uMngeni Tourism NPO. He dismissed claims the NPO was favoured by the municipality.
“Sizwe needs to provide evidence of what he is talking about. There is a lot of things that do not make sense. This thing was raised last year and dismissed.
“I have declared everything, I do not have any secrets.”
Pappas said the allegations were a smear campaign against his contest for the premiership.
Prinsloo also rejected the allegations to TimesLIVE. He said while two other tourism NPOs received comparatively less funding, this was due to limited geographic coverage.
“The allegations against me lack merit and verifiable evidence. Financial reports, service-level agreements and audited financial statements are matters of public record and openly refute claims of impropriety. It's pivotal to view these allegations within the context of their issuance — a political gambit devoid of substance.”
Prinsloo said Pappas was not part of any financial discussions that involved uMngeni Tourism.
“The additional grant of R100,000 during the 2022/2023 financial year was judiciously allocated to priority areas of uMngeni Tourism and uMngeni municipality, such as revising our marketing and communications strategy and bolstering our online presence, among others. We adhere to a rigorous standard of financial oversight. These reports are submitted to the council and are public documents.”
‘Ngenzeni na?’: Chris Pappas defends himself as allegations of nepotism reported to public protector
Tourism deal 'predates his mayorship'
uMngeni mayor Chris Pappas is unfazed after being reported to the public protector for allegations of nepotism involving a tourism organisation headed by his ex-fiancé JP Prinsloo, which receives financial support from the municipality.
Pappas has been in the spotlight this week after the DA announced his candidacy for the KwaZulu-Natal premiership. Soon after the announcement, allegations of nepotism and corruption were levelled against him and went viral on social media.
Former DA member Sizwe Mchunu lodged a complaint with the public protector on Wednesday alleging uMngeni Tourism NPO, which was headed by Prinsloo, last year received more money than other organisations funded by the municipality.
“The NPO chaired by JP Prinsloo has been given a R100,000 grant by uMngeni municipality while the top five tourism organisations operating within uMngeni received R10,000 each per month,” Mchunu said.
In an interview with uKhozi FM, Pappas confirmed the NPO received financial support from the municipality but said this was done before he became mayor in 2021.
“Ngenzeni na? [What have I done?]. They are scared of me. I know about the NPO. It is part of three community organisations supported by the municipality. These organisations were already supported by the municipality before I became mayor. The person they are mentioning [Prinsloo] was the chairperson of the organisation before I became mayor of uMngeni,” Pappas said.
He was confident he would not be found wanting in any investigation about financial support to uMngeni Tourism NPO. He dismissed claims the NPO was favoured by the municipality.
“Sizwe needs to provide evidence of what he is talking about. There is a lot of things that do not make sense. This thing was raised last year and dismissed.
“I have declared everything, I do not have any secrets.”
Pappas said the allegations were a smear campaign against his contest for the premiership.
Prinsloo also rejected the allegations to TimesLIVE. He said while two other tourism NPOs received comparatively less funding, this was due to limited geographic coverage.
“The allegations against me lack merit and verifiable evidence. Financial reports, service-level agreements and audited financial statements are matters of public record and openly refute claims of impropriety. It's pivotal to view these allegations within the context of their issuance — a political gambit devoid of substance.”
Prinsloo said Pappas was not part of any financial discussions that involved uMngeni Tourism.
“The additional grant of R100,000 during the 2022/2023 financial year was judiciously allocated to priority areas of uMngeni Tourism and uMngeni municipality, such as revising our marketing and communications strategy and bolstering our online presence, among others. We adhere to a rigorous standard of financial oversight. These reports are submitted to the council and are public documents.”
TimesLIVE
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