JOHANNESBURG – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has intervened in a probe of alleged improper deployment of public resources by senior government officials.

His move on Friday came after a high-ranking delegation of the ruling African National Congress (ANC), which comprised Defence and Military Veterans Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and ANC Secretary General Ace Magashule, flew to Harare last Tuesday in a military jet at taxpayers’ expense.

“In the interest of good governance and the prudent and ethical use of state assets,” Ramaphosa has directed Mapisa-Nqakula to submit a detailed report within 48 hours on the circumstances that led to the minister sharing the flight to Harare with the delegation, the Presidency said in a statement.

Earlier on Friday, the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) called on Ramaphosa to make an urgent public statement on the matter.

The trip is “a flagrant blurring of state and party lines and abuse of state machinery”, amounting to theft from the people by the ANC, said the DA.

Ramaphosa said in the statement that he noted the public discussion that has been generated around the flight to Harare taken by Mapisa-Nqakula and other senior officials.

The presidency said Mapisa-Nqakula had an approved trip to Zimbabwe to meet her counterpart Oppah Muchinguri Kashiri to discuss defence-related matters in the region following a recent Southern African Development Community summit.

Delegation member Lindiwe Zulu said the Zimbabwean crisis was a case of national importance – which warranted party members to travel using state resources.

The ANC said members merely caught a lift with Mapisa-Ngqakula who was on her way to the country.

“We’ve got issues of national importance here. This is one thing that needs to be understood and be understood very clearly. When there is a problem that has a negative impact on us as a nation… what is happening is not an impact on the ANC, it’s an impact on our people and our economy.”

The South African National Defence Force is yet to comment on the matter.