Arts Minister Nathi Mthethwa caused a real stir during an inter-ministerial briefing on Wednesday. The politician was challenged about his interaction with the president of Netball SA, who had recently contracted coronavirus. But his elusive response wasn’t the reassurance South Africans were looking for.
Does Nathi Mthethwa have coronavirus? Apparently not…
Cecilia Molokwane had fallen victim to the illness earlier this week, just days after she and Mthethwa attended an engagement together. However, when he was asked about getting himself tested, the minister seemed to throw caution to the wind and stressed that he wouldn’t be self-isolating as a precaution.
#CoronaVirusSA [IMPORTANT] Minister Nathi Mthethwa fielded a question about him being in a meeting with Netball SA President (who has tested positive for coronavirus). He replied: “I’m fine”. He mentioned that a NICD team “came and there was no contact from my side”. @TeamNews24 pic.twitter.com/NnuW8I9P4Z
— Kamva Somdyala (@kamva_somdyala) March 25, 2020
Funds for artists
Mthethwa, who is showing no symptoms and claims to have had “zero contact” with the netball chief, says he was assured by the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) that no further action was required. The incident comes just days after ACDP MP Steve Swart was forced in quarantine, after he attended a gathering that was exposed to the deadly coronavirus.
During his speech, Nathi Mthethwa revealed that his department had a R150 million warchest to support struggling artists and established entertainment professionals. He vowed to ensure the safety and security of everybody whose work forms an integral part of South African culture:
“We have redirected allocation at a national level to avail R150 million to provide the much needed relief in the sector. Priority will be given to artists & practitioners who were already booked by some of the canceled and postponed events funded by the department.”
“Government did engage the financial services sector and we have seen commitments – we won’t see a situation where people are chased out of their homes and flats because they couldn’t secure employment this time around, that for us we appreciate.”
Nathi Mthethwa
Source: The South African Read More“The @nfvfsa will offer immediate relief to practitioners in the film industry by prioritizing and making payments to beneficiaries that have submitted milestones in the past two weeks on an urgent basis. Beneficiaries yet to submit will also be paid.” – @NathiMthethwaSA
— uNontobeko wakaSibisi (@Nontobek0Sibisi) March 25, 2020
