Son of Mozambique’s former president, 18 others on trial

Son of Mozambique’s former president, 18 others on trial

Accused allegedly colluded to secure $2.2 billion in loans without parliament’s approval

By Hassan Isilow

JOHANNESBURG (AA) - A high-profile corruption trial involving the eldest son of former Mozambican President Armando Guebuza and 18 others accused of secretly acquiring $2.2 billion worth of loans without parliament’s approval began Monday in the capital Maputo.

According to local media reports, Ndambi Guebuza and the others appeared before a judge in the grounds of a maximum security prison in Maputo.

The accused are alleged to have colluded with ministers and top government officials to secure the loans from international investment banks to front projects, including the development of a tuna fishing boat fleet.

The incident happened between 2013-2014 without approval from the country’s parliament, which meant that the Mozambican government was used as a guarantor and it would pay back the loans if the companies failed.

Among those accused are Manuel Chang, the former finance minister who served between 2005 and 2015 under President Guebuza.

He was arrested in Johannesburg in December 2018 and has since been in custody.

South Africa’s Justice Department said in a statement Monday that it will extradite Chang to Mozambique to face trial.

The Mozambican government only announced the scandal in 2016, after it realized that about $500 million from the debt was unaccounted for and another $200 million was paid in bribes.

The southern African nation, which heavily depends on international funding to support its budget, was badly affected after some of its funders withdrew their support due to the scandal.

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