Death in Darkest Africa

 

The uprising in the Central African Republic (CAR) and the subsequent loss of life of South African troops deployed there has raised many questions as to what they were really doing there and if there were ulterior motives of having them there.

It seems that once again our government is not telling us everything and are trying their best to shut everybody up by claiming it isn’t national interest and that it in the interest of national security not to disclose details of what really happened.

The snippets of news that we managed to get indicated that our troops had vacated their base in Bangui in such haste that they had left their uniforms and equipment lying on the parade ground. Pictures showed the victorious rebels standing around amongst items left behind by the South African parachute soldiers (parabats). Now as far as my memory serves me, I don’t recall any soldiers in the SADF (South African Defense Force) ever vacating a base and leaving any equipment to fall into enemy hands. On the contrary the SADF took over plenty of enemy bases, where they had just dropped everything and run. Sometimes even before our troops had reached them!

An unconfirmed bit of news was that the SA troops had fled Bangui and taken shelter at the airport under the protection of French troops.  Now if this is true, South Africa as a nation that prided itself as being one of the best armies in Africa, no longer exists. The French news agency has reported that the number of SA troops killed was actually between 36 and 50 and not the 13 as claimed by the South African government.

International Relations Minister Nkoane-Mashabane said that the South African government would investigate international reports querying the death toll of South African soldiers in Bangui. If this is being investigated then there may be some truth in the higher figures.

The excuse of not knowing exactly what the number of killed is that the situation in the CAR is still chaotic. Quoting the minister “What I can say is that what was confirmed by United Nations [UN] and African Union representatives based in the Central African Republic is that in a coup situation there will be chaos, loss of life, and other unforeseen circumstances”. Apparently the government is waiting for confirmation of what is actually happening in CAR which brings me to our esteemed minister of defense in parliament today:

Minister Mapisa-Nqakula sat in parliament and stated to the world that our troops were not equipped or prepared to deal with an attack by the rebels in the Central African Republic.

A further matter of concern is that the minister hinted that there are questions regarding quality of military intelligence provided to the SA troops in Bangui.

The clash with Seleka rebel fighters in Bangui on 23 March was not really a surprise as our troops were aware of the fact that the rebels were on the outskirts of the town and were advancing to take over power in a coup.

Then the minister came up with some statements that in any other country would have had her looking for a new job tomorrow:

Quote 1:

“I’m still wondering how we lost it there, what happened.”

Now when a minister of defense sit back comfortably in her leather chair in parliament and states that she is wondering how and why we lost troops it just tells me that she has no idea of what happened and that she doesn’t deserve to be a minister of defense. From what I have heard she has never even been in the military and has no idea of what really goes on in her portfolio.

Quote 2:

“I think that is what we did not anticipate, that the kind of rebel you would end up protecting yourself from is the kind of rebel which will come in heavy vehicles and will have high-calibre machinery, I think that’s what happened here.”

Now if reports from Bangui are anything to go by it would seem that the SA National Defense Force (SANDF) troops were equipped and had the necessary armoury to deal with the rebels they expected to encounter. But suddenly the rebels were armed with mortars and heavy-calibre weapons when they attacked the SA troops.

Lieutenant General Derrick Mgwebi then went on to say that military intelligence had showed that the rebels were poorly trained and that they really didn’t have any heavy firepower at their disposal. He then went on to insinuate that the troops that attacked the SA troops weren’t actually Seleka rebels but came from one of the neighboring countries.

Now even if they were, how did they manage to move from this neighboring country all the way to the capital without being noticed by the UN or the African Union or the French troops stationed in CAR? Where was our own military intelligence during all of this?

 

On Wednesday (3 April 2013) President Jacob Zuma announced South Africa would withdraw its troops from the country. Wonder if we will once again be exposed to yet another cover up? And the withdrawal won’t make it any easier for the families that lost loved ones in some foreign country for who knows what reason.

 

South Africa versus the United Nations

 

As a follow up to my blog of yesterday:

It seems that the South African National Defence Force has been rapped over the finger as to the troops that are being sent into combat zones in Africa by the United Nations.

A senior member of the UN has raised a concern about the discipline and preparedness of the South African troops in countries such as Sudan. This follows various incidents which cumulated in the raising of these concerns by the United Nations. The United Nations suggested that they would be willing to send instructors to help get the troops battle ready.

In response to this offer it seems that Lt-Col T Mashalaba has sent a very strongly worded letter (tirade) to the senior members of the United Nations troops  indicating that nobody other than South Africans would be allowed to train his troops (Battalion 10) and that if anybody was sent to train them they would receive no co-operation from the SA troops.

Now once again we are seeing the total arrogance of our leaders who under the circumstances should be more than happy to receive any help that they can. Or are they more interested in ceremonies such as the one where 10 ceremonial swords were presented to the North Vietnamese army?

Sadly this attitude of Lt-Col T Mashalaba cost the life of Rifleman Vincent van der Walt (23) when they were sent into a dangerous area where they walked straight into an ambush.

Brig-Gen Xolani Mabanga seems to think our 2500 troops deployed in Sudan, DRC, and Mozambique (why?) are very well trained and claims to have no knowledge of the correspondence by the United Nations or the reply by Lt-Col T Mashalaba, which apart from being sent to members of UNAMID, was also sent to senior member of the United Nations in New York.

For his edification I have included an extract of the letter that Lt-Col T Mashalaba penned.

(Source Beeld – my apology for the bad copy but at least it is readable 🙂 )

Just a pity that this arrogance is costing the lives of our troops who in all truth should be protecting our own borders.

 

Doesn’t the government look after the people first then themselves?

For those who don’t want to read anything long, skip down to the bottom for a bit that sums up the situation as it currently is.

I was under the impression that most governments that are voted in democratically, are there to govern the country/people on behalf of the people, that voted them into power in the first place

Since the ANC came into power here in South Africa they have built up a culture of spending money as if there is no tomorrow. Prior to coming into power they had to depend on the rest of the world to fund them as they claimed not to have any funds to keep operating.

The Mangaung conference (Bloemfontein to us older folk) cost the ruling party’s conference more than R100m. Most of this had to be paid upfront in full as many businesses had not been paid for the ANC’s centenary celebrations held there earlier in the year.

The spending on the Mangaung conference was equal to what the party had spent on its year-long centenary celebrations which means that a total of R200m had been spent purely on the ANC and not on the people they are meant to be representing.

Apparently the following vehicles were seen at the parking lot for the conference (this could not be confirmed but comes from a source normally pretty reliable)
106 BMW X5’s,

28 RANGE ROVER SPORTS,

211 BMW 5 or 7 series sedans,

11 MASERATI’s,

103 MERCEDES BENZ sedans,

6 HUMMERS,

9 FERRARI’s.

Now using the low side of averaging prices for these vehicles it comes to a staggering R351m!! Not bad going for the previously disadvantaged is it? I wasn’t previously disadvantaged according to the government, yet I couldn’t afford most of the cars that were there. Not even a second hand one!

It was your and my taxes that ultimately paid for these cars as well as the luxury accommodation, decadently luxurious and excessive food and drinks (all free!!), wives, spouses, lovers, friends and family.

And only a peep is heard from the people that they are unhappy.

So we continue with the old refrain that the government doesn’t have money for  RDP (matchbox houses at R50 000 each) houses, proper medical facilities where patients don’t die due to lack of care/medicine, an education system that has failed the pupils where the pass mark is artificially manipulated to ensure a good pass rate, a police force that is rife with corruption due to low salaries and improper training, subsidies for old age homes and other care facilities no longer happens, sewerage plants round the country no longer working, water and electricity supplies erratic due to no funds for maintenance. We have people dying in the rural areas due to lack of food/water. The number unemployed has long ago passed the 25% danger point.  And the list goes on……

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“The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people’s money.”  — Margaret Thatcher

The folks who are getting free stuff, don’t like the folks who are paying for the free stuff, because the folks who are paying for the free stuff can no longer afford to pay for both the free stuff and their own stuff.
The folks who are paying for the free stuff want the free stuff to stop, and the folks who are getting the free stuff want even more free stuff on top of the free stuff they are already getting!
Now…  The people who are forcing the people to pay for the free stuff have told the people who are RECEIVING the free stuff, that the people who are PAYING for the free stuff, are being mean, prejudiced, and racist.
So…  The people who are GETTING the free stuff have been convinced they need to hate the people who are paying for the free stuff by the people who are forcing some people to pay for their free stuff, and giving them the free stuff in the first place.
We have let the free stuff giving go on for so long that there are now more people getting free stuff than paying for the free stuff.
Now understand this: all great democracies have committed financial suicide somewhere between 200 and 250 years after being founded.  The reason?  The voters figured out they could vote themselves money from the treasury by electing people who promised to give them money from the treasury in exchange for electing them.  Thomas Jefferson said it best:  “Democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not”.
The number of people now getting free stuff outnumbers the people paying for the free stuff.

 We have one chance to change that at the next election will we?  

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The following was received from a black colleague of mine who I considered very pro-ANC.

A Nation of Sheep Breeds a Government of Wolves!
Zuma:     Gone!
Schooling: A decent pass rate not a manufactured one!
Culture:  Western Standards not 40 wives cared for by the tax payers!
Corruption Free; No one with a criminal record has a position in Government! (and that includes most of those now warming the benches in Parliament!)
We the people are coming. Let’s take a stand!!!

Now it is becoming very interesting.

 

Oscar Pistorius (Blade Runner)

Image:Beeld

Johannesburg – Paralympic athlete Oscar Pistorius allegedly shot and killed his girlfriend in the early hours of Thursday morning, apparently after thinking she was an intruder.

The police’s Captain Sarah Mcira confirmed the woman had been shot in the head and arm.

She died at the scene.

Pistorius is apparently in police custody.

Unconfirmed reports from residents living in the area say the woman was shot four times but we will wait for official confirmation.

It is really a sad day in the history of a man that became a role model for so many people.

 

Constitution

 

 

Currently the Americans are embroiled in difference of opinion regarding the second amendment and the right to bear arms. The Americans take what is said in their constitution very seriously and don’t take any changes or misinterpretations to it very lightly.

Now here in South Africa we have a so-called constitution that the rest of the world raved about as it was drafted in such a way that it would protect the citizens of South Africa as well as foreign nationals within our borders. It was hailed as one of the most progressive in the world and enjoyed high acclaim internationally.

Following the repeal of apartheid legislation, South Africa held its first fully democratic national election in 1994. The final Constitution was adopted in 1996 and phased in between 1997 and 1999. South Africa’s Constitution states that South Africa is “founded on a commitment to achieve equality, to promote and protect human dignity and to advance human rights and freedoms”. The Constitution enshrines the principles of supremacy of the rule of law, universal adult suffrage, regular elections and multi-party democracy. The Bill of Rights contained in Chapter 2 of the Constitution is one of the world’s broadest, guaranteeing freedom of speech, movement and political activity, and providing persons accused of crimes with many legal protections including the right to a speedy trial and the right to remain silent. (Victims of crimes seems to have less rights  J )

The Bill of Rights also enshrines the right to access to adequate housing, food, water, education and healthcare, and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, gender, sexual orientation, age, pregnancy or marital status.

NOW IF THE ABOVE IS TRUE AND THE GOVERNMENT IS SUPPOSED TO ADHERE TO THE CONSTITUTION WHY DO WE STILL HAVE PEOPLE WITHOUT ADEQUATE HOUSING, COMUNITIES WITHOUT WATER, PEOPLE DYING OF HUNGER, SHODDY EDUCATION AND A HEALTHCARE SYSTEM THAT IS FAILING THE VERY PEOPLE IT IS SUPPOSED TO HELP?

NEARLY 20 YEARS ON, WHY DO WE STILL HAVE “BLACK EMPLOYMENT EQUITY” (BEE) WHICH IS TOTALLY RACE ORIENTATED? THESE LAWS ARE CONTRADICTORY TO OUR CONSTITUTION AND EXCLUDES ALL OTHER RACES OTHER THAN BLACK, FROM BEING ABLE TO COMPETE IN THE WORKPLACE FOR JOBS OR WORK.

HOW COME THE REST OF THE WORLD JUST SITS BACK AND ALLOWS IT? WHEN THE PREVIOUS GOVERNMENT APPLIED DISCRIMINATORY LAWS, THE WORLD WAS QUICK TO APPLY SANCTIONS.

OR IS IT NOW A CASE OF TURNING A BLIND EYE SO THAT THE CURRENT GOVERNMENT   CAN SELL SOUTH AFRICA TO THE COUNTRY WILLING TO BUY IT CHEAPLY?

 

South African banks are also corrupt.

Now that Jacob Zuma has been elected to run the country for the next five years one has to wonder if the banks helped fund his election campaign? If he had been kicked out, would they have to call up all the money he owes them.

Some interesting reading in an article published by Stephan Mulholland which makes one wonder about banks who are supposed to be pillars of moral standing – and they deal with our money…..

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THIS IS THE BUSINESS: Our banks sink into a pit of corruption

by Stephen Mulholland, 16 December 2012, 08:53

BANKS have three basic sources of cash: shareholders’ funds, depositors’ funds and other loans and the revenue they earn on these.

This is aided and abetted, of course, by those endless, complicated schedules of exorbitant fees which no one, including those who design them, appears to understand.

Banks are licensed by the state to accept, and safeguard, our deposits and are expected to abide by high standards of probity and responsibility.

Theirs is a sacred obligation, one which is a pillar of any modern economy and whose balanced and moral behaviour is essential if society is to function efficiently.

It was thus disturbing to learn in the brilliant Mail & Guardian report on the KMPG investigation into the financial affairs of President Jacob Zuma and others how some of our major banks played fast and loose with shareholders’ and depositors’ money to curry favour with our political elite.

These bankers ladled out millions to a proven and reckless spendthrift with an appalling credit record, a known defaulter notorious for spending well in excess of his means on properties, cars and so forth while consistently dishonouring his obligations, like any common schlenter.

They advanced him money for one reason only: to buy political capital.

Those banks – Standard, Absa and FNB – are as guilty as sin of influence peddling, a crime in the US and other jurisdictions.

In the full knowledge that Zuma was a totally unreliable borrower, this is what Absa business centre manager Raymond O’Neil put in writing to his colleagues and superiors: “[Zuma’s] bank balance was the last item on his mind, with more important matters regarding the country and the province to deal with.”

O’Neil went on: “We recommend the opening of the Unique package account for Minister Zuma based on his strategic positioning and importance to the group.” This was after O’Neil acknowledged that he was aware of Zuma’s bad credit record with Standard and Nedbank.

It gets worse. O’Neil then told his bank that Zuma was likely to be elected deputy president and that Nelson Mandela was going to settle his debts. Mandela did come to the party with R2-million for Zuma, which then disappeared into various corners but for a paltry R100000 left in the permanently overdrawn Zuma account.

Absa went further and signed Zuma up as a “private client”, a status then reserved for those with at least R1-million spare for investment. Zuma never had R1 to spare, never mind R1-million.

His private client status was noted in the bank’s records as a political decision, which the M&G says was “seemingly in line with [then] chief executive Nallie Bosman’s view, stated in bank records, that ‘in terms of all financial matters’ Zuma was considered a strategic client”.

This “strategic” client immediately plunged into a huge overdraft which elicited this comment: “The conduct leaves much to be desired, but we have little option but to live with this client in view of his position.”

Standard Bank, which apparently escaped unscathed from Zuma’s shenanigans, cancelled his much- abused credit card and obtained a court order against him.

This did not deter FNB from approving a R900000 bond against the fabled Nkandla compound, chicken feed, of course against the R240-million odd of taxpayers’ money now sunk into that remote hideaway.

In support of this bond an FNB official wrote: “I am sure that the powers that be will assist where we need to bend the rules a little.”

Asked for comment last week FNB responded: “When evaluating risk in a loan application there are cases where we apply management discretion and judgment to determine lending decisions.

There are some loan applications that require discretion and our objective remains to ensure we are making the correct decision in determining the likelihood of repayment of the loan. Reference to bending the rules should be interpreted as management applying its discretion.”

It is sad to see our great institutions sinking into that stinking pit of corruption that many of our ruling political elite inhabit. What a sad example they have set.

* This article was first published in Sunday Times: Business Times

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Just a passing thought – what do the banks tell their shareholders when the arrears figures go up, and it is due to the high profile political players not paying what they owe?  And 10 out of 10 to Standard Bank for cancelling his credit card and taking it to court!!

O’ yes, I was told to include a bit about the above views being expressed are those of the author / blogger and that is is not the view of the banks mentioned, and that although it may be acceptable to me it does not represent the views and policies of my employer.

 

 

 

Cloak and Dagger

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Occasionally one receives an email that has a link to some other site. This link is sent to you by someone who thinks you may possibly find the content interesting.

I enjoy trying to gather information about how things fit together and what the possible causes and reactions are to things happening around us. The link below is very pertinent to what is happening around the world presently.

Far too many people don’t realise that things don’t ‘just’ happen and that there must be a catalyst to kick it off.

Just a pity it hasn’t quite worked out in Zimbabwe. And I don’t think it is going to happen again here in South Africa.

But it is a good article to read to gain a better insight of how the current protests in the Middle East are, and can be, manipulated.

http://moreintelligentlife.com/content/ideas/a-velvet-fist?page=full

 

Time to reflect?

Thirty-nine years ago, on Oct. 6, 1973, the third major war between the Arabs and Israel broke out. The war lasted only 20 days. The two sides were engaged in two other major wars, in 1948 and 1967.
The 1967 War lasted only six days. But, these three wars were not the only Arab-Israel confrontations. From the period of 1948 and to this day many confrontations have taken place. Some of them were small clashes and many of them were full-scale battles, but there were no major wars apart from the ones mentioned above. The Arab-Israeli conflict is the most complicated conflict the world ever experienced. On the anniversary of the 1973 War between the Arab and the Israelis, many people in the Arab world are beginning to ask many questions about the past, present and the future with regard to the Arab-Israeli conflict.
The questions now are: What was the real cost of these wars to the Arab world and its people. And the harder question that no Arab national wants to ask is: What was the real cost for not recognizing Israel in 1948 and why didn’t the Arab states spend their assets on education, health care and the infrastructures instead of wars? But, the hardest question that no Arab national wants to hear is whether Israel is the real enemy of the Arab world and the Arab people.
I decided to write this article after I saw photos and reports about a starving child in Yemen, a burned ancient Aleppo souk in Syria, the under developed Sinai in Egypt, car bombs in Iraq and the destroyed buildings in Libya. The photos and the reports were shown on the Al-Arabiya network, which is the most watched and respected news outlet in the Middle East.
The common thing among all what I saw is that the destruction and the atrocities are not done by an outside enemy. The starvation, the killings and the destruction in these Arab countries are done by the same hands that are supposed to protect and build the unity of these countries and safeguard the people of these countries. So, the question now is that who is the real enemy of the Arab world?
The Arab world wasted hundreds of billions of dollars and lost tens of thousands of innocent lives fighting Israel, which they considered is their sworn enemy, an enemy whose existence they never recognized. The Arab world has many enemies and Israel should have been at the bottom of the list. The real enemies of the Arab world are corruption, lack of good education, lack of good health care, lack of freedom, lack of respect for the human lives and finally, the Arab world had many dictators who used the Arab-Israeli conflict to suppress their own people.
These dictators’ atrocities against their own people are far worse than all the full-scale Arab-Israeli wars.
In the past, we have talked about why some Israeli soldiers attack and mistreat Palestinians. Also, we saw Israeli planes and tanks attack various Arab countries. But, do these attacks match the current atrocities being committed by some Arab states against their own people.
In Syria, the atrocities are beyond anybody’s imaginations? And, isn’t the Iraqis are the ones who are destroying their own country? Wasn’t it Tunisia’s dictator who was able to steal 13 billion dollars from the poor Tunisians? And how can a child starve in Yemen if their land is the most fertile land in the world? Why would Iraqi brains leave Iraq in a country that makes 110 billion dollars from oil export? Why do the Lebanese fail to govern one of the tiniest countries in the world? And what made the Arab states start sinking into chaos?
On May 14, 1948 the state of Israel was declared. And just one day after that, on May 15, 1948 the Arabs declared war on Israel to get back Palestine. The war ended on March 10, 1949. It lasted for nine months, three weeks and two days. The Arabs lost the war and called this war Nakbah (catastrophic war). The Arabs gained nothing and thousands of Palestinians became refugees.
And on 1967, the Arabs led by Egypt under the rule of Gamal Abdul Nasser, went in war with Israel and lost more Palestinian land and made more Palestinian refugees who are now on the mercy of the countries that host them. The Arabs called this war Naksah (upset). The Arabs never admitted defeat in both wars and the Palestinian cause got more complicated. And now, with the never ending Arab Spring, the Arab world has no time for the Palestinians refugees or Palestinian cause, because many Arabs are refugees themselves and under constant attacks from their own forces. Syrians are leaving their own country, not because of the Israeli planes dropping bombs on them. It is the Syrian Air Force which is dropping the bombs. And now, Iraqi Arab Muslims, most intelligent brains, are leaving Iraq for the est. In Yemen, the world’s saddest human tragedy play is being written by the Yemenis. In Egypt, the people in Sinai are forgotten.
Finally, if many of the Arab states are in such disarray, then what happened to the Arabs’ sworn enemy (Israel)? Israel now has the most advanced research facilities, top universities and advanced infrastructure. Many Arabs don’t know that the life expectancy of the Palestinians living in Israel is far longer than many Arab states and they enjoy far better political and social freedom than many of their Arab brothers. Even the Palestinians living under Israeli occupation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip enjoy more political and social rights than some places in the Arab World. Wasn’t one of the judges who sent a former Israeli president to jail is an Israeli-Palestinian?
The Arab Spring showed the world that the Palestinians are happier and in better situation than their Arab brothers who fought to liberate them from the Israelis. Now, it is time to stop the hatred and wars and start to create better living conditions for the future Arab generations.

— This article is exclusive to Arab News.
almulhimnavy@hotmail.com

 

Internet under attack once again

Right now at a UN meeting in Dubai, authoritarian regimes are pushing for full governmental control of the Internet in a binding global treaty — if they succeed, the internet could become less open, more costly and much slower. We have only 2 days to stop them.

The Internet has been an amazing example of people power — allowing us to connect, speak out and pressure leaders like never before. That’s largely because it’s been governed to date by users and non-profits and not governments. But now countries like Russia, China and United Arab Emirates are trying to rewrite a major telecom treaty called the ITR to bring the Internet under its control — the web would then be shaped by government interests and not by us, the users. Tim Berners Lee, one of the “fathers of the Internet,” has warned that this could increase censorship online and invade our privacy. But if we object with a massive people-powered petition, we can strengthen the hand of countries fighting this power grab.

We have stopped attacks like this before and can do it again before the treaty text is locked this week. A wave of opposition to a new ITR is already building — sign the petition to tell governments hands off our Internet! and then forward this email to everyone you know — when we hit 1 million signers, it’ll be delivered straight to the delegates at this cozy meeting:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/hands_off_our_internet_i/?bcjsnbb&v=20018
(if link doesnt work – please copy and past into your browser)

The meeting to update the ITR (International Telecommunication Regulations) is being convened by a UN body called the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). Normally, it wouldn’t merit much attention, but Russia, China, Saudi Arabia and others are trying to use the meeting to increase government control of the Internet through proposals that would allow for access to be cut off more easily, threaten privacy, legitimize monitoring and traffic-blocking, and introduce new fees to access content online.

At the moment, our Internet has no central regulatory body, but various non-profit organisations work together to manage different technological, commercial and political interests to allow the Internet to run. The current model is certainly not without its flaws. US dominance and corporate influence highlight the need for reform, but changes should not be dictated from an opaque governments-only treaty body. They should emerge from an open and transparent, people-powered process — putting the interests of us users in the center.

The ITU does extremely important work — expanding affordable access for poor countries and securing networks — but it’s not the right place to make changes to how the Internet operates. Let’s ensure that our Internet stays free and governed by the public and show the ITU and the world that we won’t stay silent in the face of this Internet attack. Click below to sign and then share this email widely:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/hands_off_our_internet_i/?bcjsnbb&v=20018

Avaaz members have come together before to save the free web — and won. More than 3 million of us demanded the US kill a bill that would have given the government the right to shut down any website, helping push the White House to drop its support. In the EU, the European Parliament responded after 2.8 million of us called on them to drop ACTA, another threat to the free net. Together, now we can do it again.

With hope,

Pascal, Ian, Paul, Luca, Caroline, Ricken, Kya and the rest of the Avaaz team

 

Jacob Zuma and bending the truth.

The saga about the upgrading of Jacob Zuma’s cultural village just won’t go away as he may have hoped.

The fraud and corruption trial of his former friend Schabir Shaik is revealing where some of the funds for his home “Nkandla” came from. It seems that some outside sources (French weapons manufactures) helped the President pay a bill of R1,3 million towards the costs of this village. There was also an amount of R140,000 paid from Bohlabela Wheels to the construction company working on the Nkandla site. (I will blog about Nora Fakude-Nkuna later)

Banks bending the rules.

Now the saddest part of the latest report has to do with the alleged financing of a housing loan from FNB.

Evidence revealed during the trail that President Zuma got a housing loan of R900,000 and that a businessman  stood surety for nearly half of the loan, R400,000. From court records it seems that the businessman, Vivian Reddy, also made repayments during 2003 and 2004 to this home loan. (I will blog about Vivian Reddy later)

It would seem that a FNB home loan official made the cardinal sin of putting in writing “I’m convinced that the appropriate authorities will help us bend the rules slightly.”

Now it would seem that the rules really got bent by the bank! Firstly from all reports and rumours doing the rounds it would seem that the actual ground does not belong to Zuma. One story has it that the ground belongs to Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini. Another story has it that the ground belong to a tribal trust. A search of the Deeds Office has not revealed any deed over the property in the name of Jacob Zuma. So in who’s name did the bank register the bond? And why was it necessary to bend the rules according to the bank official?

If my memory serves me, I seem to recall that at one stage Jacob Zuma was living way above his means and  Schabir Shaik was even paying his children’s school fees and debts. Now if this was the case, surely the bank would have been aware of the state of Zuma’s affairs? They do all these checks to see if you can afford to repay the loan. And heaven forbid that you are on ITC and paid an account late! Your loan will not be approved.

So it seems as long as you have the political connections you can get the banks to break the rules but what is the payback? You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours? And at the time of the alleged loan Mac Maharaj’s was a director of FirstRand, the holding company for FNB.

Personally I think the President should get his spokesperson, Mac Maharaj,  to keep his comment to himself. His ducking and diving in this matter is just making matters worse!! Also check the following article for Mac’s involvement in various deals (especially the new toll roads).

http://mg.co.za/article/2011-11-25-the-evidence-that-damns-mac

Bank refutes giving Zuma a loan:

http://mg.co.za/article/2012-11-20-fnb-we-couldnt-have-given-zuma-a-bond-for-nkandla