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A political war of words is brewing in the former Transkei, in the Eastern Cape, over a cup of tea or the lack thereof.

The ANC's Mlibo Qoboshiyane has shot back over allegations by the DA's Athol Trollip of poor management of tea plantations, saying that 'he grabbed the wrong and empty cuppa'. (Daren Taylor, M&G)

Last year, Eastern Cape MEC for rural development and agrarian reform Mlibo Qoboshiyane who also doubles as provincial ANC spokesperson invited the provinces Democratic Alliance, Athol Trollip, to have a cup of tea and relax. This came in the wake of a scathing newspaper opinion piece Trollip penned about the state of the Magwa and Majola tea estates.

Trollip turned down the offer of tea, instead opting to carry out a surprise oversight tour to the cash-strapped estates last week, accompanied by Annette Steyn, the partys shadow minister for agriculture, forestry and fisheries.

After the visit, Trollip said he had been disappointed when he went to search for a cup of tea.

This turned out not only to be a futile exercise but also an empty offer by MEC Qoboshiyane, he said.

What we found first at Majola was a very sad scene where the tea bushes, though some having been pruned, were all overgrown and unfertilised. There has been no plucking of tea at all this season, which should have started in September.

The plucking season ends in March and there is absolutely no sign that any harvesting will take place this season, he said in a statement.

Trollip said these tea plantations have received in excess of R200-million in government bailouts yet the state of productivity and viability had worsened.

The current managers are also constantly under pressure from a belligerent and desperate unionised workforce, and they say that their lives are sometimes threatened. It must also be said however that their viability is bedevilled by low workforce productivity and high minimum wages that make the plantations and their tea production uncompetitive.

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Politicians' war of words brewing since tea party snub