Khulubuse wedding for sale
But embattled former mine boss says he is not involved
Some people are making my wedding their wedding
KHULUBUSE Zuma is “not in charge” of the preparations for his own wedding — and may just turn up as a guest.
A public relations company, Lifestyle Tabloid, is selling the exclusive rights to Zuma’s nuptials to Swazi princess Fikisiwe Dlamini.
Amid rumours that the former mine boss, who once claimed to be a billionaire, is experiencing cash-flow difficulties, the starting bid has been set at R50 000.
Zuma’s cousin Edward spent R2.5-million on his wedding to Phumelele Shange in October 2011 — and the bill took two years to settle.
Zuma, who paid more than R1-million for a Maserati as a surprise gift for his fiancée two years ago, said he was unaware of the sale of the rights to his wedding. He said plans for the ceremony, scheduled for October, had not been finalised.
“Some people are making my wedding their wedding . . . [and] the media is creating a hype for no reason,” he said.
Lifestyle Tabloid director Kenneth Mahloane said Zuma was not involved in the preparations. “[He] is not in charge of the day-to-day operations leading to the big day, therefore he may not know anything — understandably so, because he’s a very busy man,” he said.
Mahloane, who was commissioned by Zuma’s relatives, said a number of people were involved in the preparations. “A wedding of this calibre has many people running the show.”
During the past year, the former taxi boss, who has lost assets worth millions after the collapse of a mining empowerment deal, has been focused on a multibillion-rand oil exploration project in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
His two companies, Caprikat and Foxwhelp, registered in the British Virgin Islands, have started operations around Lake Albert, on the DRC-Uganda border, where more than two billion barrels of oil reserves have been discovered.
His mining operation in South Africa has collapsed, costing him a significant portion of his fortune.
The Sunday Times last year reported that liquidators had attached his assets, including shares in a four-star hotel, the Boulevard 44 Hotel in Ballito, north of Durban, to recover part of the debt he and his associates owe in the mining debacle involving Aurora Empowerment Systems.
Aurora, which listed Zuma as a director, took over Pamodzi Gold’s mines in Grootvlei on the East Rand and Orkney in North West in October 2009 after being nominated as preferred bidders. But in October 2011, after the collapse of the mines, Aurora was removed as the preferred bidder and placed in liquidation when it failed to pay creditors and more than 5 000 workers.
Directors of Aurora reportedly faced civil claims by Pamodzi of about R1.7-billion.
In April last year, Zuma’s three BMWs and household goods were auctioned to help pay R10-million owed to Protea Coin Security, which provided security at the mines.