SAfrica's Mbeki explains sacking of deputy minister

JOHANNESBURG, Aug 11 (Reuters) South African President Thabo Mbeki, who sparked an outcry by firing his deputy health minister, broke his public silence over the decision today and accused her of insubordination.

Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge had won widespread praise for her direct and proactive approach to tackling AIDS in a country where the government has been accused of dragging its feet in the fight against the disease ravaging South Africans.

The SAPA news agency published a letter which it said Mbeki had sent to Madlala-Routledge informing her of her dismissal.

Mbeki told her she had failed to be part of a team, saying the constitution called on government officials to work collectively. He also said she had taken a trip to Madrid without his authorisation.

''It is clear to me that you have no intention to abide by the constitutional prescriptions that bind all of us,'' he was quoted as saying.

Madlala-Routledge told a news conference yesterday that disagreements over how to fight AIDS might have led to her dismissal.

GARLIC AND BEETROOT She said Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang, who has suggested fighting AIDS with garlic and beetroot rather than drug treatments, might have been behind her sacking last week.

The health minister has denied the accusations.

Whatever the case, South Africans still face same grim realities. An estimated 12 per cent of South Africa's 47 million population is infected with HIV. About 1,000 South Africans die each day of AIDS and related diseases.

At a conference in South Africa in June, scientists and health workers said they were encouraged by the government's pledge to expand the rollout of anti-retroviral drugs and increase HIV testing.

But the promises have been overshadowed by the fury over Mbeki's decision, which has thrown South Africa's AIDS policies into the spotlight again.

The opposition and AIDS activists questioned Mbeki's commitment to tackling AIDS and accused him of promoting a culture of sycophancy that threatens South Africa's reputation as a successful democracy after apartheid which had set an example for other African nations.

Mbeki's ruling ANC, which dominates South African politics, has been accused of promoting business-friendly economic policies and leaving behind millions of poor people, including those struggling with AIDS.

Mbeki denies he has neglected the poor.

Mbeki, known for his quiet diplomacy, is facing mounting threats to what is widely seen as a plan by him to retain influence after standing down as head of state when his current term ends in 2009, political analysts say.

Criticism of Mbeki did not ease today. The top story in The Star, one of Johannesburg's biggest newspapers, said adlala-Routledge has ''blown the lid off the troubled empire ruled'' by the health minister.

The Citizen added in an editorial: ''This debacle reveals a lot about the government and Thabo Mbeki's autocratic style.'' REUTERS LPB RAI2003