Redi Tlhabi reacts to being named in Zuma’s state capture testimony

Journalist Redi Tlhabi does not appear to be too concerned that she has been named by former president Jacob Zuma at the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture on Monday.

Zuma spoke of a conspiracy against him in the form of a “coordinated attempt to character assassinate” him, and claimed Thlabi was “part of the external forces trying to destroy him”.

He also claimed Tlhabi is currently working on a film adaptation of her book Khwezi – The Remarkable Story Of Fezekile Ntsukela Kuzwayo, which he said is part of the character assassination – as according to him its purpose is to portray him as a rapist.

“The movie Redi Thlabi is making is being done in the United States and is named ‘Raped by power’,” Zuma said.

There is no information on the alleged movie available online at all, and it seems its existence is news to the Tlhabi family too, if the journalist’s tongue-in-cheek response on Twitter is anything to go by.

“Ok everyone NOW this is serious,” she tweeted.

READ MORE: Zuma tells Zondo Ramathlodi is a spy

“My husband has just laughed at me twice in 24 hours. That’s not right. Calls me, I pick up: ‘Hawu baby, why are you denying me all the juicy news? Kanti you are a spy? And you are making a movie? In fact what’s your real name?!'”

Zuma mentioned Tlhabi shortly after claiming that former mineral resources minister Ngoako Ramathlodi, who gave damning testimony against Zuma when he testified at the commission, was a spy.

The former president told the commission that the narrative that he is corrupt is part of the supposed plan to “character assassinate” him because in the early 90s he came across information about spies within the ANC.

Zuma said he has a list of those who are spies within the governing party.

Some of these spies have given authors information to write books about him, Zuma told the commission, in another reference to Khwezi.

Tlhabi’s book looks at the life of Kuzwayo – who Zuma was tried for raping and acquitted in 2005, and also looks at the issue of the alleged rape and child rape that took place in the ANC training camps in the 1980s.