A full Bench of the North Gauteng High Court sitting in Pretoria on Thursday said the Presidency and state attorney must attempt to recover legal costs incurred by former president Jacob Zuma in his personal capacity. In September, the Presidency said Zuma’s personal legal fees had cost the state R16.78-million. The former president took a R7.8-million loan from the now-collapsed VBS Mutual Bank to repay some of the money spent on upgrades to his private Nkandla home. The court ordered the state to provide the full accounting detail, steps taken and steps to be taken to recover the amounts within three months.
Eskom Secures $1.5 Billion Loan
Eskom says it has secured a R1.5 billion loan from the French Development Agency (AFD). “This loan constitutes the first tranche of a R6.5 billion multi-tranche loan facility signed between the two institutions in March 2017,” the utility said in a statement released on Thursday afternoon. Eskom says the money loaned from AFD will go towards building new electricity transmission lines to strengthen the country’s network.
Nigeria Govt Sues Shell And Partners For $1 Billion
The government of Nigeria is suing Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Eni SpA and other companies for more than $1 billion over a 2011 oil deal it says was tainted by corruption. The suit, filed Wednesday in London, alleges that money the companies paid to acquire an oil exploration license in the Gulf of Guinea was diverted to bribes and kickbacks, the Nigerian government said in a press release. The transaction is already the subject of a separate, ongoing criminal trial in Milan.
Ndalo Media To Shut Down In January
Ndalo Media will officially shut down on January 31 2019, company owner Khanyi Dhlomo told her employees on Wednesday. The media company that owns Destiny, Destiny Men and Elle magazines, among others, has been experiencing cash flow issues, even failing to cover certain operational costs in the past few months. Sunday World reported in November that Ndalo Media faced liquidation over a R13-million debt allegedly owed to its printers accumulated between 2016 and 2018.
Hlaudi Launches African Content Movement
Speaking on Thursday in Milpark, Johannesburg, the self-confessed “wonderful person” made bold statements about bringing change to South Africa while announcing he was going to launch the ACM. Motsoeneng, the president of the movement, also revealed the names of the ACM’s leadership team. Ally Mosina is the chairperson, Lindiwe Mthembu will handle the finances as the treasurer general, Romeo Ramuada will steer the ship on a daily basis as secretary general and Esther Padi will assist as deputy secretary-general
Absa Downtime Causes Frustration
Absa says all its systems are now back online. The bank has come under fire on social media with customers complaining they were unable to transact for much of the day. Absa now says its app and online banking are back up and running while cash withdrawals and branches are also fully operational. The bank has apologised for the inconvenience.
Currencies : Rand/USD 14.24 – Rand/GBP 17.99 – Rand/EUR 16.17
The Turk Report : My Perspective 