Opposition parties in Zululand have condemned the IFP-led Ulundi Local Municipality’s decision to print municipality T-shirts laced with their party colours for the staff.

The municipality, in the north of KwaZulu-Natal, is a traditional stronghold of the IFP and is home to the late party founder, Inkosi Mangosuthu Buthelezi.

It recently held a wellness day for the staff and dressed them in T-shirts bearing colours resembling the party’s black, red, gold, and white.

The action prompted an angry response from the ANC and NFP, which condemned the action, calling it a blatant abuse of taxpayers’ money.

In a statement issued by the ANC’s Mzala Nxumalo regional spokesperson, Dr Zakhele Buthelezi, the party accused the IFP of looting municipality resources under the guise of governance.

Buthelezi stated that the IFP has turned municipalities into a private political cash machine.

“As the ANC, we are not shocked in the slightest. This is exactly what we have come to expect from IFP-run municipalities: corruption dressed up as governance, and party colours smuggled into state operations as if the municipality is an extension of the IFP’s campaign office.

“Ulundi is simply confirming what has long been obvious — in IFP-controlled administrations, the line between public funds and party interests does not exist. These municipalities pour millions into political celebrations and vanity events while residents queue for water, sit in the dark, and struggle without basic services,” said Buthelezi

He stated that the printing of staff T-shirts in IFP colours is not an “oversight”. It is part of a deliberate pattern of collapsing the municipality into the IFP. 

He further stated that the ANC will be following the money, because this looks very much like public funds being laundered into party propaganda.

“We call on the people of Zululand to reject this blatant abuse of power. If you vote the IFP into office, you must be prepared for your rates and taxes to be converted into IFP merchandise rather than service delivery. The evidence is there in black and white — or in this case, in bold IFP colours,” concludes Buthelezi.

Weighing in, NFP leader in the Zululand region, Siphamandla Ntombela, called on its members working in the municipality not to wear these T-shirts because they will be campaigning for the IFP.

“We condemn what the municipality has done. If workers wear these T-shirts,, they promote and market the party not the municipality. It is wrong to use public resources for party benefits,” said Ntombela.

Both IFP national spokesperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa and the municipality had not yet responded to the questions sent to them at the time of the publication.

willem.phungula@inl.co.za

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