Daily Dispatch
Tissue of lies slowly unravels
APASSAGE from a poem by Scottish novelist Walter Scott, which reads ‘Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practise to deceive’, could not ring truer for under-fire president Jacob Zuma.
Pressure has been nearly insurmountable in recent months as civil society, religious leaders, academia and even his cadres within the ANC call for Zuma to step down as evidence detailing the extent of “state capture” continues to surface.
The president has said his relationship with the Guptas was not improper and that the family wielded no influence over issues of state. However, the ever-mounting evidence speaks to the contrary. At the weekend, yet another blow was delivered when Sunday newspapers exposed how the president and the Guptas allegedly planned to move the Zuma family to Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The Gupta family are said to own an almost half a billion rand home in an exclusive suburb of Emirates Hills in Dubai. E-mail correspondence between Zuma’s son Duduzane and Ashu Chawla, the CEO of Gupta-owned Sahara Computers, reportedly contained a draft letter from the president to Abu Dhabi crown prince general Sheikh Mohammad bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
In it, Zuma writes how he “fondly” remembers the “gracious hospitality and warmth” experienced during a visit to the UAE. “It is with this sentiment that I am happy to inform you that my family has decided to make the UAE a second home.”
Zuma has denied the claim, but his denial rings hollow as more strands are spun in this web of deceit.
Sunday newspapers further exposed the extent of influence the now notorious Gupta family and their cohorts have over government affairs.
Allegations include putting Eskom executive Matshela Koko up at the luxurious Oberoi Hotel in Dubai, assisting ANCYL president Collen Maine on how to respond to media questions and receiving confidential information on cabinet meetings from Faith Muthambi, who was removed as Communications Minister and appointed Minister of Public Service and Accountability. And so the list goes on.
The revelations come as a motion of no confidence in Zuma is tabled to the national executive committee of the ANC, which met in Irene outside Pretoria at the weekend. The debate on the motion was expected to continue behind closed doors yesterday.
While the president may be dreaming of a life of luxury in Dubai for his nearest and dearest, millions of South Africans he was elected to serve, continue living each day not knowing where their next meal will come from while many impoverished communities still do not have access to healthcare, education and basic services remain a pipe dream. These citizens are a mere afterthought, if one at all, for those who are driven by greed and self-interest.
The question one is left pondering is how the president, who once fought for the soul of the country during the apartheid, now finds himself being accused of selling it to the highest bidder.