13 OFFICIALS ORDERED TO DESTROY NKANDLA RECORDS - REPORTS

Reports say 13 officials were ordered to make no personal notes or audio recordings of Nkandla meetings.

A total of 13 public works officials have reportedly been ordered by high ranking government officials, including ministers, to destroy any records of secret meetings on upgrades to President Jacob Zuma's Nkandla homestead.

In March, Public Protector Thuli Madonsela, released her Nkandla report and found that Zuma and his family unduly benefited from the R246 million upgrades to his KwaZulu-Natal home.

Madonsela also recommended that he pay back a portion of the money used in the Nkandla upgrades.

The City Press is reporting that the officials plan to expose instructions from their superiors to bypass tender procedures and take shortcuts from 2009 when construction on the homestead begun.

The newspaper says the officials were ordered to make no personal notes or audio recordings of the meetings.

The City Press reports that the 13 officials will demand that travel documents and itinerates of the ministers and officials be produced to prove they attended secret meetings on Nkandla construction.

The officials have apparently been set up to take the blame for the inflated prices but will fight back and expose direct orders linked to the president.

One of their allegations is that Zuma personally instructed the department to appoint the architect who has subsequently been asked to pay back more than R150 million.

Disciplinary hearings held by public works are expected to hear evidence from December until March next year.

 An aerial view of Nkandla taken in August 2013 which was taken by an aerial mapping company using a hi-tech, high-altitude mapping aircraft.

A 2010 aerial view of Nkandla taken off Google Earth.

Yesterday opposition parties issued a stern warning to the African National Congress (ANC) and to the president.

They said Zuma must be held accountable for the multi-million rand upgrades to his Nkandla residence.

Opposition Members of Parliament have promised to table their own report on the scandal before the end of this month as they believe the Nkandla ad-hoc committee is illegitimate.

The parties withdrew from the Parliamentary committee last week.

They wrangled over whether witnesses could be called to testify and whether the public protector's report on the upgrades should be enforced.

The parties also accused the ANC of destroying everything late former president Nelson Mandela stood for.

- EWN