Mosebenzi Joseph Zwane was the Minister of Mineral Resources of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

in the Second Cabinet of former President Jacob Zuma serving from 2015 until 2018. A controversial figure, Zwane resigned on 25 February 2018 following allegations of state capture and in particular his role in the Vrede Dairy Project, which helped bankroll the

Gupta Family The Gupta family is a wealthy Indian-born family with business interests in South Africa, whose most notable members are brothers Ajay, Atul, and Rajesh "Tony" Gupta—as well as Atul's nephews Varun, and US-based Ashish and Amol. The family ow ...

wedding. Zwane is currently the chairperson of the parliamentary committee on transport.

Career

Born in

Vrede Vrede is a town in the Free State province of South Africa that is the agricultural hub of a 100 km² region. Maize, wheat, mutton, wool, beef, dairy products and poultry are farmed in the region. History In 1863 one J. H. Krynauw bought ...

, Zwane got involved in political career in the early 1980s as a member of the Thembelihle Youth Congress. He later joined the Thembelihle

African National Congress The African National Congress (ANC) is a social-democratic political party in South Africa. A liberation movement known for its opposition to apartheid, it has governed the country since 1994, when the first post-apartheid election install ...

(ANC) branch. He also served in the regional executive committee of the Frankfort region in the early 1990s. He became the first secretary of the Frankfort region that became the Thabo Mofutsunyana region, preceding the amalgamation of local councils. Zwane became a regional executive committee member of the Thabo Mofutsunyana region and subsequently its

chairperson The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

. He has been the regional chairperson of the Thabo Mofutsunyana ANC region since 2006. Beginning 21 May 2014, Zwane served as a Member of the Free State

Legislature A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its p ...

(provincial legislature). He previously served as MEC in the Portfolio of Agriculture and

Rural Development Rural development is the process of improving the quality life and economic well-being of people living in rural areas, often relatively isolated and sparsely populated areas. Rural development has traditionally centered on the exploitation of ...

Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

and Environmental Affairs in the Free State provincial government. On 23 September 2015, Zwane was officially sworn in as Minister of Mineral Resources. He had been appointed by then

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Jacob Zuma to succeed

Ngoako Ramathlodi Ngoako Ramatlhodi (born 21 August 1955), a senior member of the African National Congress, was South Africa's Minister of Public Service and Administration from 2015 to March 2017. In the first Zuma administration he had been an MP and a contr ...

. Zwane attained his secondary teacher's diploma from the South African Teachers College in

Pretoria Pretoria () is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa. Pretoria straddles the Apies River and extends eastward into the foot ...

. He also holds a certificate in Executive Leadership Municipal Development from the

University of Pretoria The University of Pretoria ( af, Universiteit van Pretoria, nso, Yunibesithi ya Pretoria) is a multi-campus public research university in Pretoria, the administrative and de facto capital of South Africa. The university was established in 1908 ...

Allegations of involvement in State Capture

In August 2017, Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse laid charges of treason, corruption, extortion, fraud and theft against Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane in light of his unofficial, unethical and illegal relationship with the

. Zwane‚ charged under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act, was among the first of the known

allies to have criminal charges laid against him. Zwane is accused of allowing the Gupta family to loot nearly R2-billion from South Africa's state coffers via the Vrede Dairy Project and two mine rehabilitation funds. Zwane is also accused of abusing his position of power as minister to the benefit of the Gupta family and their associates in the landing of their wedding guests at

Air Force Base Waterkloof Air Force Base Waterkloof is an airbase of the South African Air Force. It is situated on the outskirts of Pretoria, and is the SAAF's busiest airbase. The base's name, ''Waterkloof'', is Afrikaans. It means ''Water Ravine'' in English. Despite ...

in April 2013. The Democratic Alliance laid criminal charges include racketeering, money laundering, assisting another to benefit from the proceeds of unlawful activities, and acquiring, possessing or using the proceeds of unlawful activities in terms of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (No 121 of 1998); and submitting false, or untrue, tax returns in terms of the Tax Administration Act (No 28 of 2011) against Zwane Zwane, Atul Gupta, Ajay Gupta, Rajesh Gupta and their business associates Ronica Ragavan and Kamal Vasram. In January 2018, the

Hawks Hawks are birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. They are widely distributed and are found on all continents except Antarctica. * The subfamily Accipitrinae includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, sharp-shinned hawks and others. This subfamily ...

unit of South Africa's Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation seized R220 million that the Free State Department of Agriculture under Zwane had paid to the

Gupta family The Gupta family is a wealthy Indian-born family with business interests in South Africa, whose most notable members are brothers Ajay, Atul, and Rajesh "Tony" Gupta—as well as Atul's nephews Varun, and US-based Ashish and Amol. The family ow ...

in connection with the Vrede Dairy Project, calling it a "scheme designed to defraud and steal monies" from the Free State Department of Agriculture. The UK NGO Shadow World Investigations (formerly Corruption Watch UK) claimed that Mosebenzi Zwane, as MEC for agriculture in the Free State at the time, allegedly received benefits worth R500 000 from Gupta companies a month after a 99-year lease was signed with the Guptas for the Estina farm. The NGO stated it was prepared to testify at the ongoing

Zondo Commission The Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture, Corruption and Fraud in the Public Sector including Organs of State, better known as the Zondo Commission or State Capture Commission, is a public inquiry established in Janu ...

. The fourth part of the Zondo Commission report, released on 29 April 2022, recommended that Zwane be criminally prosecuted for his alleged involvement in corruption.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zwane, Mosebenzi Living people Year of birth missing (living people) African National Congress politicians University of Pretoria alumni Government ministers of South Africa Members of the National Assembly of South Africa People from the Free State (province) Controversies in South Africa Jacob Zuma Corruption in South Africa

Career

Allegations of involvement in State Capture

See also

References

External links