Presidency slams DA claims that Mcebisi Jonas' credentials rejected by US
On Tuesday, the Presidency condemned the DA for what it called the harassment of Jonas, who was appointed by Ramaphosa to deal with delicate trade and diplomacy talks with the US.
FILE: Former deputy finance minister, Mcebisi Jonas, reacts during a demonstration march organised by a broad-based coalition called #UniteBehind, to place pressure on MPs to vote for the removal of South African President Jacob Zuma (not visible) before a no-confidence vote by Parliament, on 7 August 2017 in Cape Town. Picture: RODGER BOSCH/AFP
CAPE TOWN - The Presidency has slammed the Democratic Alliance (DA) for claiming President Cyril Ramaphosa’s special envoy Mcebisi Jonas’ credentials have been rejected by the United States (US).
On Tuesday, the Presidency condemned the DA for what it called the harassment of Jonas, who was appointed by Ramaphosa to deal with delicate trade and diplomacy talks with the US.
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The Presidency was responding to DA international relations spokesperson Emma Powell, who issued a statement on Tuesday, saying Jonas has not been granted a diplomatic visa by the US and will be unable to perform his duties as special envoy.
Powell said Ramaphosa has, for months, been fully aware that Jonas is not welcome in Washington D.C.
“The Ramaphosa administration was explicitly advised on multiple occasions that Jonas was not acceptable to Washington and was urged to appoint an alternative envoy.”
But Presidency spokesperson Vincent Magwenya was quick to reject Powell’s claims, saying special envoys don’t require credentials like other diplomats or heads of missions.
In a statement, he said DA has positioned itself as part of what he called a “right-wing nexus” that seeks to use a foreign state to effect changes to national policies in South Africa.
He said the DA is trying “cheaply but dangerously” to exploit a critical engagement between South Africa and the US to protest Ramaphosa’s removal of Andrew Whitfield as deputy minister of trade, industry and competition in June.
The DA’s pronouncements and insults against countries and international organisations, such as the Republic of Cuba or the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), offend South Africa’s international relations and posture.
He said if the DA were to succeed in undermining South Africa’s diplomatic relations, the party would harm the businesses and livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of South Africans who are dependent on good trade relations.