DoT justifies R75.7m conference bill

Deputy Transport Minister Jeremy Cronin has described media reports attributed to Democratic Alliance MP Stuart Farrow that the Department of Transport spent R75.7 million on hosting four conferences between 2007 and 2009, as “mischievous and misleading”. “South Africa had an obligation to host all these conferences and as is the case with all such conferences, the host country is responsible for the costs,” he said. For the period January 1, 2006 to February 2010, the DoT hosted four international conferences which 1 800 delegates attended.