Catholic bishops in South Africa have said that President Zuma and the ministers implicated in leaked emails alleging that members of the Indian-born Gupta family are wielding undue influence over the country’s government must resign.
Bishop Abel Gabuza, chairman of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC) Justice and Peace Commission, said the bishops were "shocked" by the revelations.
“The leaked emails, if they are authentic, show that the president’s patronage network, as well as its plans to plunder state resources, is more complex and expansive than we thought," read a statement published today (20 June) on the SACBC webpage.
At the end of May, investigative journalists leaked some of 100,000 emails alleging the extent of the Gupta family’s control over cabinet ministers and parastatal companies; their access to confidential state information and their benefitting billions of rand through government contracts.
“The problem of state capture would not have escalated this far if we had a policy that demands compulsory disclosure of corporate donations to politicians and to political parties. We therefore ask all the political parties in Parliament to work together to enact such a policy as a matter of urgency," read the statement, signed by Bishop Gabuza.
The bishops called on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange to require public companies to disclose their political spending to shareholders and stated that public companies should not be allowed to spend the money of shareholders – among them institutional investors – on political parties without informing them.
Gabuza said that the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party at its policy conference at the end of June should also consider the establishment of an Anti-Corruption Court with specialised prosecutors and judges.
“This would provide a stronger adjudication mechanism for timely and expeditious disposal of corruption and corruption-related cases,” he said.
Gabuza said that while corruption was a problem before Zuma came into office, it has significantly worsened under his presidency.
“The continued allegations of corruption throughout his term of office have weakened the state’s resolve and credibility to fight the cancer which is corruption. As a result, greed and corruption have now become the normal way of organising our social, political and economic relationships in South Africa. The moral fibre of our nation is clearly broken,” he said.
The bishop also called for the election of new ANC leadership capable of leading from the front.
“The longer we have a president and Cabinet ministers who are tainted by serious allegations of corruption, the more the culture of corruption and bribery will entrench itself so deeply in our national psyche that it will be almost impossible to eradicate it in the future," Gabuza said.
Brothers Ajay, Atul and Rajesh Gupta, relocated to South Africa from India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh in 1993. The brothers preside over a wide range of corporate interests include mining, IT and media. Their parent company, the Sahara group, turns over around £14 million per year. They met President Zuma around 10 years ago.
The leaked emails, discovered by South Africa's Sunday Times newspaper, allege that the Guptas were sent the minister of mineral resources’, Mosebenzi Zwane, CV a month before he was appointed to the position. They also claim the family intervened to have the powers of, then communications minister, Faith Muthambi, strengthened.
The Guptas also appear to have been central to a scheme for Zuma and his family to acquire residency in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.
Zuma responded to this particular claim saying he has no plans to leave South Africa when he retires.
"I have my home in Nkandla and I have no intention of living anywhere else. He said the claims made in the email were “shocking in the extreme” adding that they were “absolute mischief aimed at sowing confusion.”
The emails are also reported to reveal that President Zuma's son, Duduzane, who co-owns a company - Wens Holding Ltd - with the Gupta brothers, bought an 18 million rand property in Dubai with substantial assistance from the Guptas at the end of 2015.
An investigation was launched into the Gupta’s influence in 2016 when deputy finance minister, Mcebisi Jonas, reported that the Guptas offered him the finance minister’s post weeks before the position became available.
Ajay Gupta allegedly told Jonas the family had been keeping tabs on him and wanted him to be their man in the treasury. Ajay Gupta revealed that they’d already made six billion rand (around £350 million) from dealings with the government, and wanted to make at least 2 billion rand more (about £115 million).
When Jonas refused, they tried to sweeten the deal, offering him 600 million rand (about £34 million) and an extra 600,000 rand in cash, right there. Jonas turned down the bribe and an investigation was launched into the family.
The Guptas denied the allegation saying it was "totally false" and "just more point scoring between rival factions" within the ANC.
In 2013, it emerged that a Gupta family plane carrying wedding guests landed at the Waterkloof Air Base near Pretoria. The base is normally reserved for visiting heads of state and diplomatic delegations.
The governing African National Congress (ANC) concurred with the opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) that this was a blatant abuse of power by a family that enjoys a cosy relationship with South Africa's first family.
Atul Gupta, while insistent that the family had done nothing wrong, issued an apology. He added that his family was "simply trying to give [our] daughter... a memorable wedding on South African soil".
PICTURE: Ajay and Atul Gupta, are pictured with President Zuma's son, Duduzane Zuma, who is a director of the Gupta's Sahara group ©Twitter
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