KZN ANC deputy chairman claims foul play in R27m development scandal.
IF CLAIMING INSANITY IS DEEMED THE legal defence of last resort, claim-ing political interference probably comes a close second. The deputy chairman of the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal, Mike Mabuyakhulu, who is facing a litany of criminal charges for his role in the looting of R27 million from state coffers, now wants the world to believe he is being politically persecuted in order to keep him out of office.
But if Mabuyakhulu’s conspiracy theory is proved true, it is his own provincial boss Sihle Zikalala who is driving in the dagger – such is the level of intrigue in KZN ANC politics where the shadow of former president Jacob Zuma still looms large.
Mabuyakhulu made his startling political-agenda claim in a 21-page affidavit filed with the Durban Commercial Crime Court where he faces charges for his role in the looting of R27m from the Department of Economic Development and Tourism in 2012 while he was the political head of the department.
He wants the case against him struck from the roll in terms of Section 342a (1) of the Criminal Procedures Act, citing unnecessary delays.
Mabuyakhulu was arrested and released on bail in February 2018. The matter was then postponed and in March 2019 a new, updated indictment was filed in the court.
It is Mabuyakhulu’s contention that he was charged on 7 February 2018 in an effort to keep him out of office while the ANC was undergoing the “significant political maneuvering” that ultimately saw Jacob Zuma removed as state president and replaced by his deputy, Cyril Ramaphosa, on 15 February 2018.
What Mabuyakhulu does not say – although it is widely known in political circles – is that he had backed Ramaphosa, while the chairperson of the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal, Sihle Zikhalala, was and is still a staunch supporter of Zuma.
This story is from the April 2019 edition of Noseweek.
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This story is from the April 2019 edition of Noseweek.
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