Winnie Mandela gets political reprimand

Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, the controversial ex-wife of the former South African President, was today found guilty of violating finance rules as an MP.

The parliamentary ethics committee unanimously ruled that she flouted government finance regulations by failing to disclose donations and financial interests from the Mandela Family Museum.

She faces an fine, a public rebuke by parliament’s speaker, and an undetermined penalty for being in contempt of parliament.

Madikizela-Mandela, an MP for the ruling ANC is notorious for her chronic absenteeism.

She has repeatedly failed to appear before a special government panel investigating her alleged misdeeds.

At the Pretoria High Court last month, Madikizela-Mandela pleaded not guilty to 85 counts of fraud and theft charges. The trial is set to resume later this year.

An anti-apartheid hero, Madikizela-Mandela is popular with many poor urban blacks but she has also been criticised by President Thabo Mbeki and senior ruling party officials as a self-promoting insubordinate.