Pretoria - The Presidency has refuted media reports stating that a former ANC Member of Parliament accompanied President Jacob Zuma on a state visit to China in 2010.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Presidency said reports on the former Member of Parliament Vytjie Mentor are misleading.
“Such reports are an attempt to dispute the Presidency assertion that the President has no recollection of the former MP. Ms Mentor was definitely not part of the official delegation to the People's Republic of China, should she have travelled to the country during the state visit,” said the Presidency.
The Presidency said it received media enquiries about a reported comment on social media by Mentor.
“The Presidency has received media enquiries about a reported comment on social media … Mentor. President Jacob Zuma has no recollection of Ms Mentor. He is therefore unable to comment on any alleged incident in her career.
“By stating that Ms Mentor ‘accompanied’ President Zuma on a state visit to China, the media gives the public an incorrect impression of a status similar to that of Ministers or Deputy Ministers who receive direct formal invitations from the President to accompany him on State Visits, and who then join him on all official engagements during the visit as members of the official delegation.
“The Presidency reiterates that the President has no recollection of Ms Mentor and is not aware of the alleged incidents in her career that she has reportedly written about on social media,” said the Presidency. - SAnews.gov.za
