A daughter of South Africa’s former president Jacob Zuma has resigned from parliament following allegations that she helped recruit South African men to join Russian mercenaries fighting in the Ukraine war. Her party, Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), confirmed the development on Friday, November 28.
Police announced last week that they were investigating claims that Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, an MP in the MK party, had allegedly lured 17 South African men to Russia “to fight in the Ukrainian war without their knowledge or consent”. The presidency also said earlier in November that it had been approached to help bring home the 17 men, who were reportedly “trapped” in the Donbas region after being lured there “under the pretext of lucrative employment contracts”.
At a press briefing in Durban, MK national chairperson Nkosinathi Nhleko said: “Comrade Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla has tendered her resignation from the National Assembly and all public representative responsibilities with immediate effect.” The party insisted her resignation was not an admission of wrongdoing. “As far as we know, the resignation has got nothing to do with admission of guilt or the organisation finding her guilty,” party official Magasela Mzobe told reporters.
Mzobe also distanced the MK party from the alleged recruitment scheme, saying: “Umkhonto we Sizwe as a party is not involved in the Russian-Ukraine matter affecting these young people.”
The party said Zuma-Sambudla had responded to the accusations in an affidavit submitted to the police. The allegations were reportedly made by one of her half-sisters, who filed an affidavit requesting a formal investigation. Police confirmed the case had been transferred to a specialised unit responsible for probing crimes against the state.
South African media reports claim that the 17 men were allegedly sent to Russia for security training organised by the opposition MK party, led by Zuma, who served as South Africa’s president from 2009 to 2018. The war triggered by Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine has attracted mercenaries from across the world, including several African countries.
Zuma-Sambudla is also currently standing trial on unrelated charges of inciting the deadly 2021 riots that left more than 350 people dead, charges to which she has pleaded not guilty.
Her father, Jacob Zuma, was previously sentenced to 15 months in prison for refusing to testify before a commission investigating corruption under his presidency. He served two months before being released on medical grounds, and his sentence was later commuted by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
