KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Sport, Arts and Culture Amanda Bani-Mapena has been fired by the department.
This is due to Bani-Mapena not attending the CAF African Schools Football Championship that was held in Durban this past weekend.
She was supposed to be part of the inaugural tournament where new Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Mr Zizi Kodwa was in attendance, expecting her to be around since she is based in the host city, according to iDiski Times sources.
CAF president Patrice Motsepe was also in attendance since the tournament was launched by him, making it an embarrassment of Bani-Mapena not to being around.
According to sources, she was already living on edge for her previous failures and her firing was political.
“She was fired for not attending Motsepe’s school tournament when the minister of sport was around. But the matter is political,” said a well-placed source.
Bani-Mapena was appointed by Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube during the Executive Council in Durban on 11 September last year. She lasted only eight months in the post.
She is the former chairperson of the Sport and Recreation Portfolio Committee in the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature and was a dedicated political activist, committed towards the development of KwaZulu-Natal and the youngest Member of Provincial Legislature for the ANC.
After the news broke, Bani-Mapena has seemingly resigned from her role on Wednesday, saying: “I wish to take this opportunity to inform the media and members of the public that today I am relinquishing my role as a deployed Member of the Executive Council who was entrusted with the Sport, Arts and Culture Portfolio.”
Story by Robin-Duke Madlala (@duke_robin).
