Transnet paid for Vytjie Mentor

TRANSNET paid R133,000 for former public enterprises portfolio committee chairperson Vytjie Mentor to fly first class to China.

This was revealed yesterday by Public Enterprises Minister Malusi Gigaba in an answer to a parliamentary question. The Sunday Times revealed two months ago that the ANC was investigating Mentor after she got Transnet to pay R150,000 for her to join President Jacob Zuma's state visit to China in August.

Gigaba revealed yesterday that the actual cost of the trip was just over R155,000, which Transnet paid from its sponsorships budget. Most of this amount, R138,000, was spent on first class plane tickets for Mentor.

Transnet also paid about R11,000 for Mentor to spend one night in the swanky Portsman Ritz Carlton Hotel in Shanghai.

Gigaba admitted that Transnet had never funded any other overseas trips of members of Parliament in the past. Although the ANC removed Mentor as chairperson of the public enterprises portfolio committee two weeks ago, Gigaba still claimed yesterday that the committee would benefit from her enhanced understanding of Chinese state-owned enterprises.

Mentor said the three-day trip would give her a "better understanding of her responsibilities" as she would be able to meet the Chinese state-owned-enterprises involved in rail.