Presidency condemns DA's 'harassment' of Mcebisi Jonas
This followed the DA's statement on Tuesday that Jonas had been refused a visa to the US by the Donald Trump administration.
Mcebisi Jonas in studio with Stephen Grootes after President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed him as special envoy to the US. Picture: 702
CAPE TOWN - The Presidency has condemned the Democratic Alliance (DA) for what it called the harassment of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s special envoy to the United States, Mcebisi Jonas.
This followed the DA's statement on Tuesday that Jonas had been refused a visa to the US by the Donald Trump administration.
The DA also questioned Jonas’s credentials, as the country engages in trade discussions with the US.
Presidency spokesperson, Vincent Magwenya, has cautioned South Africa against treating what he said was DA "disinformation" on matters of international relations and diplomacy as official government policy.
He said the DA’s latest effort to embarrass Jonas involved claims that the United States had rejected Jonas’s "credentials" and that Jonas was therefore unable to perform his role as special envoy.
DA international relations spokesperson, Emma Powell, claimed earlier that Jonas had his credentials rejected.
But Magwenya said in a statement that the DA was seeking to add sensationalism to its claim by suggesting President Ramaphosa and Mr Jonas faced a crisis in view of the United States’ pending implementation of trade tariffs announced several days ago by Trump.
He said that special envoys did not present "diplomatic credentials" to host countries in the way that designated heads of mission or other diplomats do.