State spends R1.4 million to deport Bester and lover
Home Affairs Minister Dr. Aaron Motsoaledi has revealed to the parliament’s portfolio committee that it cost the taxpayer R1.4 million to bring back Thabo Bester and his girlfriend Dr. Nandipha Magudumana from Tanzania on a chartered flight, saying it was the “cheapest” option.
Bester escaped from the Mangaung Maximum Correctional Centre in Bloemfontein in May 2022. He was captured in Tanzania with his lover Magudumana and brought back to South Africa
14 officials had to travel to Tanzania to repatriate the pair.
“We asked any company that could give us an airplane that can carry 14 people, which would be able to get landing rights and all the documentation on their own without the help from the state in less than 24 hours, the R1.4 million was the cheapest of them all and also needed to meet all the requirements set by the Tanzanian authorities. said Motsoaledi“
The Dassault Falcon 900B aircraft was chartered from Zenith Air by the National Airways Corporation (NAC). provider.
“The Tanzanian officials said under no conditions do they want to be blamed or accused of rendition, so they couldn’t hand Thabo Bester and Nandipha Magudumana over to the army or the police and they couldn’t use their transport modes; that’s why they insisted home affairs find the mode of transport…
They opted for deportation, not extradition or any other system. When a person is deported to their country of origin, they are handed only to immigration officials of that country, not any other authorities, and the Tanzanians said they are not prepared to hand over Thabo Bester to police,”said Motsoaledi.
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