JOHANNESBURG: Leaked documents released by the South African media on Thursday alleging improper dealings in government contracts will open President Jacob Zuma up to renewed scrutiny and may deepen divides in the ruling African National Congress.
Zuma has survived calls to resign from within the usually united ANC in recent weeks due to disputes over political appointments and his friendship with the Indian-born Gupta family, wealthy businessmen whose companies have contracts with state-owned firms.
Investigative journalists at AmaBhungane, a non-profit group that has a strong track record of exposing what it says are government corruption scandals, released some of more than 100,000 leaked e-mails and documents.
It says they prove Gupta-owned companies unduly influence the award of government contracts worth hundreds of millions of dollars — including the building of locomotives and pre-payments for coal deliveries before a deal was signed.
A Gupta family spokesman did not respond to questions by phone and said he may reply to e-mailed inquiries from Reuters later. The Gupta family and Zuma have denied wrongdoing when similar allegations have been made in the past.
Spokesmen for Zuma and the ANC did not respond. Reuters was not independently able to verify the allegations.
Zuma is due to appear in Parliament at 2 p.m. (1200 GMT) to respond to questions about the presidency budget. There is no planned interaction with lawmakers but he will likely face heckling from opponents in the chamber.
“Zuma is running a criminal state and is using state institutions to enrich himself and his friends,” Mmusi Maimane, leader of the opposition Democratic Alliance, told Reuters.
“These documents show once again that the ANC has embarked on a state-sponsored corruption campaign that runs deep.”
The latest allegations of influence-peddling may deepen a divide in the ANC as factions battle for control ahead of a conference in December where Zuma’s successor as party leader will be chosen. Zuma can remain as head of state until a 2019 election.
Zuma’s camp is expected to back his ex-wife and former African Union chair Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, while another faction will support Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The contents of the leaked confidential government documents will likely embolden Zuma’s opponents in the ANC who want to oust him or prevent his chosen successor from becoming party president in December, analysts say.
“The leaks will play into the factional battle over succession which is getting intense. The stakes are very high,” said Daryl Glaser, politics professor at Johannesburg’s University of Witswatersrand.
“I don’t think that what comes out will be enough to result in Zuma resigning before December.”
A constitutionally mandated anti-graft watchdog said in a report last year that the Guptas had undue influence over government officials and former Deputy Finance Minister Mcebisi Jonas said he was offered a promotion by the family.
Jonas and Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan were removed by Zuma in a reshuffle in March.
On Wednesday, government ministers bowed to mounting pressure and told Eskom to remove its chief executive Brian Molefe, a Zuma ally, after senior politicians and the public reacted with anger at his re-appointment two weeks ago.
Molefe resigned in November last year following allegations he had links to the Gupta family. Molefe denied wrongdoing and said he resigned in the interest of good governance.
Leaked e-mails heap more pressure on Zuma
Leaked e-mails heap more pressure on Zuma
Bangladesh warms to China, Pakistan after revolution as India fumes
- There is deep resentment in Dhaka over fugitive ex-PM Hasina, who escaped uprising in August and flew to New Delhi
- India has long been wary of China’s growing regional clout as both nations compete for influence in South Asia region
DHAKA, Bangladesh: Protests in Bangladesh that toppled the government last year triggered a diplomatic pivot, with Dhaka warming toward China after neighboring India was angered by the ousting of its old ally Sheikh Hasina.
One year since the protests, that realignment risks intensifying polarization — and fears of external interference — as political parties in Bangladesh jostle for influence ahead of elections next year.
For the caretaker government, seeking domestic consensus for overhauling democratic institutions in the country of 170 million people, it is another challenge to juggle.
“India-Bangladesh relations have probably never experienced such intense strain before,” said New Delhi-based analyst Praveen Donthi, from the International Crisis Group.
There is deep resentment in Dhaka over the fate of fugitive ex-prime minister Hasina, who escaped a student-led uprising by helicopter in August 2024 and flew to New Delhi as thousands of protesters stormed her palace.
Interim leader Muhammad Yunus said popular anger in Muslim-majority Bangladesh had been “transferred over to India” because Hasina was offered sanctuary by New Delhi’s Hindu nationalist government.
Hasina, 77, has defied extradition orders to attend her crimes against humanity trial, and has already been convicted in absentia for contempt of court with a six-month sentence.
Md Touhid Hossain, who heads Bangladesh’s foreign ministry, said that “the relationship is now at the readjustment stage.”
Nobel Peace Prize winner Yunus’s first state visit was to China in March, a trip that saw him secure $2.1 billion in investments, loans and grants.
Beijing has also courted leading politicians directly.
Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, a senior leader of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) — the expected election frontrunner — said China is “keen” to work with the next elected government with “sincerity, steadfastness, love, and affection.”
India has long been wary of China’s growing regional clout and the world’s two most populous countries compete for influence in South Asia, despite a recent diplomatic thaw.
Bangladesh has also moved closer to Pakistan, India’s arch-enemy.
In May, more than 70 people were killed in four days of missile, drone and artillery fire between the forces of New Delhi and Islamabad, sparked by a deadly militant attack on civilians in India-administered Kashmir.
The following month, officials from Dhaka and Islamabad met counterparts in China.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said the trio had agreed to “cooperation programs” including in trade, industry, education and agriculture.
Obaidul Haque, who teaches international relations at the University of Dhaka, said talks with Beijing had “borne fruit,” including alternative health care after once popular medical tourism to India was restricted.
“For example, China designated three hospitals for Bangladeshi patients when India made access difficult,” he said.
Bangladesh and Pakistan — which split in 1971 after Dhaka’s independence war — began trade by sea last year, with direct flights also slated.
That sparked worry in New Delhi.
“The current Indian political leadership, owing to its ideological foundations... are unwilling to accept Dhaka under a government they perceive as Islamist and hostile toward India,” Donthi said.
“The visible engagement between Dhaka, Islamabad, and Beijing enhances this perception further.”
Both New Delhi and Bangladesh have imposed trade restrictions on each other.
India, which encircles much of Bangladesh by land, has imposed multiple trade restrictions — including tightening rules on Indian imports of jute fibers, ready-made garments, plastic products and food.
But trade between the neighboring nations remains high, said Md Humayun Kabir, a former Bangladeshi ambassador to Washington, who has also served in India.
But he urged caution, saying Dhaka should “tread carefully forming alliances,” and seek to strengthen “multilateral relations” as a balance.
“Cooperation still exists between the countries, but the warmth is gone,” he said.
Separately, Bangladesh, the world’s second-largest garment exporter, has also been caught in the global shakeup caused by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Dhaka is proposing to buy Boeing planes and boost imports of US wheat, cotton and oil in a bid to reduce the trade deficit, with Yunus in June telling US Secretary of State Marco Rubio of his “commitment to strengthening” ties.
But in terms of regional tensions, analysts say little will change soon — and warn they have the potential to escalate.
“Things might change only if New Delhi is satisfied with the electoral process and sees somebody amenable to it come to power in Dhaka,” the Crisis Group’s Donthi added.
“It is very unlikely that their position will change toward the current government in Dhaka,” he said.
“There may be attempts to undermine it rather than to collaborate.”
Texas flood toll passes 100 as more bodies recovered
- Trump has described the floods that struck in the early hours of Friday as a “100-year catastrophe” that “nobody expected.”
HUNT, US: The death toll from catastrophic flooding in Texas rose to more than 100 on Monday, as rescuers continued their grim search for people swept away by torrents of water.
Among the dead were at least 27 girls and counselors who were staying at a youth summer camp on a river when disaster struck over the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
Forecasters have warned of more flooding as rain falls on saturated ground, complicating recovery efforts involving helicopters, boats, dogs and some 1,750 personnel.
“There is still a threat of heavy rain with the potential to cause flooding,” Texas Governor Greg Abbott said in a statement Monday, with the number of victims expected to rise still.
President Donald Trump confirmed he planned to visit Texas on Friday, as the White House slammed critics claiming his cuts to weather agencies had weakened warning systems.
“Blaming President Trump for these floods is a depraved lie, and it serves no purpose during this time of national mourning,” Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Monday.
She said the National Weather Service, which The New York Times reported had several key roles in Texas unfilled before the floods, issued “timely and precise forecasts and warnings.”
Trump has described the floods that struck in the early hours of Friday as a “100-year catastrophe” that “nobody expected.”
The president, who previously said disaster relief should be handled at the state level, has signed a major disaster declaration, activating fresh federal funds and freeing up resources.
At least 104 flood-related deaths were reported across central Texas.
Kerr County, through which the Guadalupe River runs, was the hardest hit, with at least 84 people killed including 28 children, according to the local sheriff’s office.
The toll includes 27 who had been staying at Camp Mystic, an all-girls Christian camp that was housing about 750 people when the floodwaters struck.
Camps are a beloved tradition in the long US summer holidays, with children often staying in woods, parks and other rural areas.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz described them as a chance to make “lifetime friends — and then suddenly it turns to tragedy.”
But some residents were questioning the absence of more robust flood-warning systems in this region of south and central Texas — where such deluges are so frequent that it is known colloquially as “Flash Flood Alley.”
Experts stress the NWS sent out timely forecasts, and climate scientist Daniel Swain pinned the problem on a failure of “warning dissemination.”
San Antonio mother Nicole Wilson — who almost sent her daughters to Camp Mystic — launched a petition on Change.org urging Governor Greg Abbott to approve a modern warning network.
“Five minutes of that siren going off could have saved every single one of those children,” she told AFP.
In a terrifying display of nature’s power, the rain-swollen waters of the Guadalupe River reached treetops and the roofs of cabins as girls at the camp slept.
Blankets, teddy bears and other belongings were caked in mud. Windows in the cabins were shattered, apparently by the force of the water.
Volunteers were helping search through debris from the river, with some motivated by personal connections to the victims.
“We’re helping the parents of two of the missing children,” Louis Deppe, 62, told AFP. “The last message they got was ‘We’re being washed away,’ and the phone went dead.”
Months’ worth of rain fell in a matter of hours on Thursday night into Friday, and rain has continued in bouts since then.
The Guadalupe surged around 26 feet — more than a two-story building — in just 45 minutes.
Flash floods occur when the ground is unable to absorb torrential rainfall.
Human-driven climate change has made extreme weather events such as floods, droughts and heat waves more frequent and more intense in recent years.
Even without wins, Musk’s party may be threat to Trump: analysts
- Musk, the world’s richest person, had teased the idea of a new party for weeks
WASHINGTON: Donald Trump has shrugged off Elon Musk’s plans for a new political party as “ridiculous” — but the announcement underscored the threat the disaffected former ally poses to US Republicans defending paper-thin congressional majorities.
Musk’s weekend launch of the “America Party” came in the wake of Trump signing into law a sprawling domestic policy bill that the tech mogul has slammed over estimates that it will balloon the deficit.
Musk has been light on policy detail, but is expected to target a handful of House and Senate seats in next year’s midterm elections where the sitting Republican voted for Trump’s bill after preaching fiscal responsibility.
“Elon Musk’s America Party is a wild card that could upend the midterms in 2026, particularly for Republicans,” said political analyst Matt Shoemaker, a former Republican congressional candidate and an ex-intelligence officer.
“With bare majorities in Congress, the Republicans should be worried.”
Musk, the world’s richest person, had teased the idea of a new party for weeks, running an informal social media poll in June that showed 80 percent support among 5.6 million respondents.
Unlike previous third parties, his would have almost limitless resources, and a talisman with a large constituency of young American men who see him as a maverick genius and a superstar.
“Musk’s brand appeals to disaffected independents and younger, tech-savvy voters who might otherwise break for Republicans in swing districts,” Shoemaker told AFP.
With a personal wealth estimated at $405 billion, Musk has already demonstrated that he is willing to spend big on politics, lavishing $277 million on Trump’s 2024 campaign.
Yet a more recent foray into Wisconsin politics — he spent $20 million only to see his candidate for the state supreme court lose handily — has underlined the limits of wealth and celebrity in politics.
And then there is the political difficulty of building support in the American heartland, among voters who are not part of Musk’s Silicon Valley “tech bro” bubble.
Time magazine’s 2021 Person of the Year was once liked by a broad cross-section of Americans, but he saw his numbers plunge after joining the Trump administration as the president’s costcutter-in-chief.
Musk’s net favorability in the most recent rating published by Nate Silver, one of the most respected US pollsters, is underwater at -18.1, compared with a slightly less subaquatic -6.6 for Trump.
“While you don’t want to paint with too broad a brush, the Republican base and MAGA movement are fairly inseparable in today’s political climate,” said Flavio Hickel, associate professor of political science at Washington College in Maryland.
“And their support for Trump has been unwavering despite recent controversies. It’s hard to imagine any political project associated with Musk siphoning off votes from individuals who approve of Donald Trump.”
While multiple Republicans and Democrats have switched to independent, wins for third parties have been rare in modern US history.
The Conservative Party of New York State in the 1970s and the Farmer-Labour Party in the 1930s are the only minor parties to win Senate seats in the last century.
Smaller parties saw more success in the House in the early 20th century but have only won one seat since the 1950s.
AFP spoke to multiple analysts who pointed to the many hurdles thrown in front of third-party candidates trying to get onto the ballot in a system designed to favor the status quo.
These include minimum signature requirements, filing fees and other onerous state-specific regulations on age, residency and citizenship.
“Remember in early 2024 the so-called ‘No Labels’ party that was going to chart a middle course for the 2024 elections?” said veteran political strategist Matt Klink.
“They fizzled out in epic fashion.”
Analysts agree that winning seats in Congress may be a stretch, but say Musk can inflict pain on Trump by syphoning votes from vulnerable sitting Republicans or throwing cash at primary opponents of the president’s preferred candidates.
“Elon’s party won’t win seats, but it could cost Republicans plenty,” said Evan Nierman, the founder and CEO of global crisis PR firm Red Banyan.
“In tight districts, even a few points siphoned off from the right could flip control.”
US to send ‘more weapons’ to Ukraine: Trump
- Ukraine is contending with some of Russia’s largest missile and drone attacks of the three-year war
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said Monday the United States will send additional weapons to Ukraine, after the White House announced a halt to some arms shipments for Kyiv the previous week.
“We’re going to have to send more weapons — defensive weapons primarily,” Trump told journalists at the White House.
“They’re getting hit very, very hard,” he said of Ukraine, while saying he is “not happy” with President Vladimir Putin.
Putin launched the full-scale invasion of Russia’s smaller neighbor in 2022 and has shown little willingness to end the conflict despite pressure from Trump.
Ukraine is contending with some of Russia’s largest missile and drone attacks of the three-year war, and a halt to the provision of munitions posed a potentially serious challenge for Kyiv.
Under former president Joe Biden, Washington committed to providing more than $65 billion in military assistance to Ukraine.
But Trump — long skeptical of assistance for Ukraine — has not followed suit, announcing no new military aid packages for Kyiv since he took office in January of this year.
Netanyahu says has nominated Trump for Nobel Peace Prize
WASHINGTON: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Monday he has nominated Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize, presenting the US president with a letter he sent to the prize committee.
“He’s forging peace as we speak, in one country, in one region after the other,” Netanyahu said at a dinner with Trump at the White House.
Trump has received multiple Nobel Peace Prize nominations from supporters and loyal lawmakers over the years, and has made no secret of his irritation at missing out on the prestigious award.
The Republican has complained that he had been overlooked by the Norwegian Nobel Committee for his mediating role in conflicts between India and Pakistan, as well as Serbia and Kosovo.
He has also demanded credit for “keeping peace” between Egypt and Ethiopia and brokering the Abraham Accords, a series of agreements aiming to normalize relations between Israel and several Arab nations.
Trump campaigned for office as a “peacemaker” who would use his negotiating skills to quickly end wars in Ukraine and Gaza, although both conflicts are still raging more than five months into his presidency.
