Welcome to the Gupta Republic of South Africa: the new minister of mineral resources is an extension of the Gupta family

23 September 2015

The Economic Freedom Fighters notes the appointment of Msebenzi Zwane as the new Minister of Mineral Resources and can now officially announce to the whole of South Africa that the new Minister was appointed by the Gupta family. Msebenzi Zwane is the former agriculture MEC in the Free State, who, together with the Premier Ace Magashule sustained questionable and generally corrupt relationship with the Gupta Family.

Msebenzi Zwane is the one who gave the Guptas linked companies the R570 million dairy project in the Free State, which was later found by National Treasury to be irregular and awarded through faulty and possibly corrupt procurement procedure and practice. The dairy project came as a result of Msebenzi Zwane’s visit to India and building of formal relations with Gupta linked companies, and it was implemented despite the fact that there was no feasibility study and supply chain procedure were not followed.

When they wanted to hold a private wedding in South Africa and use the Waterkloof airbase, the Guptas used Msebenzi Zwane to write a letter inviting the Gupta family to South Africa under the pretext that they are visiting for government related purposes. Msebenzi Zwane is the one who wrote and signed a letter to claim that he invited the Gupta family to South Africa and his letter was part of the attempts to justify the illegal landing of the Guptas aircraft at the Waterkloof airbase.

Throughout the implementation of the largely corrupt and irregular Operation Hlasela in the Free State, Msebenzi Zwane is the one who signed off major projects as Acting Premier in the Free State. We call on the Public Protector to release the report on Operation Hlasela in order to inform the whole country on who Msebenzi Zwane is and what he represents.

Whilst we did not agree with the conflict of interests which defined former Minerals Minister Ngoako Ramatlodi and his Director General who have shares in various mining companies, we knew earlier that their audacity to challenge mining capitalist interests linked to the Guptas and Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa will be short-lived. Speaking against established capitalist interests in the Zuma government is a crime, and Ramatlodi is the first casualty of trying to act brave.

South Africa is currently undergoing a massive crisis in the minerals and mining sector, and the introduction of a possibly corrupt Minister with no understanding of the mining sector and its global dynamics will only worsen the crisis for South Africa. It is also evident that to gain promotion in Zuma’s cabinet, you should have strong links to the Guptas and be ready to violate Government procedures and systems. It will be a surprise when the Guptas take over the Department of Mineral Resources and flout all processes like they did before.

We have for a very long time cautioned South Africa about a puppet President who is controlled by and accounts to one family, the Gupta family which has relations with his children and family. The EFF will never stop to expose corruption and explain to all the people that under the ANC, South Africa is not safe, and has been hijacked by a rich family, which acquires its wealth through unsavoury means.

Statement issued by Julius Malema, Economic Freedom Fighters president and commander in chief, 23 September 2015