Ex-South Africa president Zuma denies hiding Gaddafi money

Former South African President Jacob Zuma denied reports claiming he has been hiding about $30 million of late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s money at his Nkandla compound.

Zuma was responding to a report published by South Africa’s Sunday Times newspaper which claimed that he had secretly moved the money from his Nkandla compound to neighboring Eswatini (Swaziland) earlier this year.

According to the paper, King Mswati III of Eswatini confirmed the presence of the large funds to President Cyril Ramaphosa last week.

However, Zuma denied the paper’s report saying on Twitter: “Sigh! I owe millions in legal fees… I’ve asked you to assist with that one title deed in order for me to sell that house. I now hear that I have been keeping money belonging to my late brother Gaddafi. Where’s this money because His Majesty knows nothing about it?”

Image result for gaddafi

South African Foreign Minister Lindiwe Sisulu also denied the paper’s report describing the story as a mere “ghost story”.

“This is a story that has been circulating for many, many years. There is no money in Swaziland. There is no money that we are aware of. And I speak honestly as a minister of international relations. If the Libyans make a request for us to investigate this matter, we will be open to do so,” Sisulu said.

Image result for gaddafi

In its report, the Sunday Times said “the Libyan military authorities have asked President Ramaphosa  to help restore millions of US dollars belonging to Gaddafi which are believed to be in Eswatini.”

The paper noted that before his death in 2011, Gaddafi had a strong relationship with South Africa and “Zuma had provided his brother, Gaddafi with safe haven”.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *