Ramaphosa to announce fate of Nene on Tuesday

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa will speak on the fate of Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene on Tuesday, his office said, days after Nene admitted to having meetings with the business family at the centre of a scandal over alleged corruption.

Nene is facing calls to resign after he admitted to visiting the Gupta brothers, friends of scandal-plagued former president Jacob Zuma who have been accused of high-level influence-peddling, and failed to disclose the meetings earlier.

Zuma and the Guptas have denied any wrongdoing.

The rand firmed 0.15% after a spokesman at the office of the president issued a statement saying the president would speak from Cape Town at 14:30 GMT on Nene.

The statement said Ramaphosa would address “developments emanating from the recent testimony of Minister of Finance Mr Nhlanhla Nene before the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture”.

Nene became a divisive figure in the scandal after acknowledging in a hearing that he had visited the Gupta brothers at their homes in Johannesburg, a confession his opponents said tarnished his credentials, and he publicly apologised on Friday.

The Guptas brothers – Ajay, Atul and Rajesh – have been accused of using their friendship with Zuma, Ramaphosa’s predecessor, to siphon off billions of rand in state funds and of inappropriately influencing cabinet appointments.

The crisis over the finance minister has thrown a spotlight on Ramaphosa’s promise to crack down on corruption and boost economic growth.