Manyi slams ‘lack of evidence’ of Gupta involvement in state capture
Rather than hard evidence, those who testified before him had only delivered 'poetry', according to the businessman.
Jimmy Manyi speaks to a reporter from the Citizen at the ANN7 Offices in Midrand on 25 August 2017. Manyi has recently acquired ANN7 and The New Age newspaper through a R450 million vendor-financed deal. Picture: Yeshiel Panchia
Businessman Mzwanele Manyi was back in the hot seat at the commission of inquiry into state capture on Monday, where he said there has been a lack of evidence at the inquiry which has led him to “struggling” to connect the controversial Gupta family to state capture.
“People we have heard here have just been poetic. I am struggling to convict people based on poetry,” he said.
Manyi said that he was “disappointed” after booking off the entire day to listen to Minister of Public Enterprises Pravin Gordhan give testimony. He felt the minister failed to give solid evidence linking the Guptas to state capture.
Manyi also called into question testimony given by former deputy finance minister Mcebisi Jonas and former CEO of the Government Communication and Information Systems (GCIS) Themba Maseko.
When Manyi complained about inaccurate reporting in South Africa’s “mainstream media”, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo pointed out that Manyi’s own publication, the now-defunct newspaper The New Age, had interviewed him. Zondo alleged the resulting article contained many errors which the newspaper refused to retract or apologise for.
READ MORE: Mzwanele Manyi slams Barbara Hogan for ‘lying’
Elsewhere in his testimony, Manyi refused to give details on discussions himself and former minister of mineral resources Mosebenzi Zwane, for whom he was a part-time advisor at the time, had with officials from Standard Bank.
Manyi has been questioned over his attendance at a meeting regarding the bank’s attempts to shut down the Gupta’s accounts.
The businessman’s Afrotone Media took over both of the Gupta’s media outlets, newspaper The New Age and television station ANN7, in August 2017.
The deal was reportedly a “vendor financing” deal to the tune of R450 million, meaning Manyi would not have to pay the money upfront and would be expected to pay it later based on the businesses’ profits.
Manyi claimed to have settled his debts with the Guptas in full for the purchase of the two media companies in April this year.
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