South African Minister's 'Untruths' Draw President's Attention

Malusi Gigaba has been embroiled in a number of controversies over the years. His career as a politician began when he was appointed as deputy minister of Home Affairs. He later became the Minister of Public Enterprises, which was left in a mess with state-owned enterprises Eskom and the national airline South African Airways, bleeding money. Gigaba was moved to Home Affairs again, this time as minister and was instrumental in issuing the Gupta family permanent residence - the same family who have been implicated in state capture, an allegation that he has denied. He was then appointed as finance minister for a while after Pravin Gordhan was fired by former president Jacob Zuma and made controversial decisions which included an increase in VAT which has had a negative impact, particularly on the poor. He has now been moved back to Home Affairs as minister. In December last year, the North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria ruled that Gigaba "deliberately told untruths under oath". The court also found that Gigaba had violated the Constitution in a matter involving the country's richest family, the Oppenheimer's and a matter involving the Guptas.