Jean-Jacques Cornish

President Zuma’s son sells his shares in Guptas company

President Jacob Zuma’s son Duduzane says he’s selling his shares in Oakbay,  the media company owned by the Gupta family accused of have inappropriately close ties with the South African leader.

Duduzne says the proceeds – expected to be around 55 million euros – will go to a program creating sustainable jobs for young people.

Allegations of corruption and shady deals continue to swirl around the Guptas.

A month ago Duduzane Zuma insisted he had no regrets about his ties to the wealthy Indian family.

Accusations of state capture leveled against them include those from within the ANC’s senior ranks.

Duduzane said he would partner up with the Guptas again.

Leaked eMails show Duduzane was deeply immersed with the Guptas. They helped him buy an expensive house in Dubai  and paid for his wedding.

He was a director of 21 Gupta companies but has resigned from the boards of most of them in the past year. He is still a director of seven of their companies that seem to have stopped trading.

South African banks have closed their accounts with the Gupta firms citing ethical considerations.

British public relations firm Bell Pottinger’s been expelled from the professional PR organization in that country because of unethical work they did polishing the Guptas’ image.

Duduzane did not specify why he’s selling his Oakbay shares, neither did he give details about how the youth programme he was proposing will operate.

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Jean-Jacques Cornish is a journalist and broadcaster who has been involved in the media all his adult life.

Starting as a reporter on his hometown newspaper, he moved briefly to then Rhodesia before returning to South Africa to become a parliamentary correspondent with the South African Press Association. He was sent to London as Sapa’s London editor and also served as special correspondent to the United Nations. He joined the then Argus group in London as political correspondent.

Returning to South Africa after 12 years abroad, he was assistant editor on the Pretoria News for a decade before becoming editor of the Star and SA Times for five years.

Since 1999 he’s been an independent journalist writing and broadcasting – mainly about Africa – for Talk Radio 702 and 567 Cape
Talk, Radio France International, PressTV, Radio Live New Zealand, Business Day, Mail & Guardian, the BBC, Agence France Press,
Business in Africa, Leadership, India Today, the South African Institute for International Affairs and the Institute for Security Studies.

He has hosted current affairs talk shows on Talk Radio 702 and 567 Cape Talk. He appears as an African affairs pundit on SABC Africa and CNBC Africa.
He lectured in contemporary studies to journalism students at the Tshwane University of Technology and the University of Pretoria.

He speaks on African affairs to corporate and other audiences.
He has been officially invited as a journalist to more than 30 countries. He was the winner of the 2007 SADC award for radio journalism.

He’s been a member of the EISA team observing elections in Somaliland, Democratic Republic of Congo, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, Egypt and Tunsiai.

In October 2009 he headed a group of 39 African journalists to the 60th anniversary celebrations of the Peoples’ Republic of China.

In January 2010 he joined a rescue and paramedical team to earthquake struck Haiti.

He is immediate past president of the Alliance Francaise of Pretoria.

Jean-Jacques is a director of Giant Media. The company was given access to Nelson Mandela in his retirement years until 2009.
He is co-producer of the hour-long documentary Mandela at 90 that was broadcast on BBC in January 2009.