Jacob Zuma’s former trusted and powerful adviser Lakela Kaunda is being accused of facilitating a meeting between state capture whistle-blower Vytjie Mentor and the Gupta family. In a statement submitted to the Zondo inquiry into state capture, Mentor for the first time names Kaunda as the person who allegedly called her in 2010 to arrange a meeting with the family at their compound in Saxonwold. Kaunda, who previously served as the former president’s chief of staff and spokesperson, is contesting Mentor’s claim. She has a legal team representing her at the commission, which kicked off in Johannesburg on Monday, after being informed that she was implicated in the state-capture scandal.
Mentor allegedly claims in her statement to the commission, which is being chaired by deputy chief justice Raymond Zondo, that Kaunda phoned her to summon her to a meeting. She says she made the trip from Cape Town to Johannesburg in the belief that her meeting was with Zuma. Kaunda’s legal team...
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