News24 reports that Minister of Home Affairs Aaron Motsoaledi will sue Zimbabwe Exemption Permit (ZEP) holders lawyer Simba Chitando.

Advocate Simba Chitando said Motsoaledi demanded that he withdraws and deletes social media claims that the department apparently made millions from ZEP holders.

He added that the minister also demands that he pays him R200 000 on the grounds that his legal arguments are defamatory.

Chitando said in a statement spokesperson for the minister, Siya Ooza confirmed the minister’s intentions.

The minister takes issue with Chitando’s statements that according to affidavits the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) filed, it told Treasury that R145 803 928 was required for the Zimbabwe exemption programme. He was told that Treasury only made R15 million available to the DHA, so the ZEP programme was not sustainable. 

However, Chitando’s view is that the money paid by an estimated 180 000 ZEP holders, excluding unsuccessful applicants, at R1 090 each, amounted to around R200 million. Chitando said during media interviews that the state committed “fraud” against the citizens of another country.

This is what Motsoaledi wants him to withdraw.

Excerpts of Chitando’s tweets and statements include a comment to SABC that Motsoaledi’s case is that the ZEP programme is an expense to the state, yet the ZEP holders are paying for the process themselves.

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