The Consulate General of Nigeria, based in Johannesburg, has called on the media to refrain from hasty conclusions on the nationality of the suspect who leaked the sex tape of himself and Zanele Sifuba, the Speaker of the ANC Free State legislature in South Africa.
Zanele Sifuba Leaked Video
KanyiDaily recalls that a Nigerian man was accused of leaking the video which shows him and the woman believed to be Zanele Sifuba lying on a bed and indulging in sexual activity.
It was alleged that the “Nigerian” man released the sex tape after he blackmailed “Zanele Sifuba” to pay him the sum of R300,000 and she refused to comply.
In a statement on Wednesday, the Nigerian envoy called on the media to refrain from purporting the involvement of a Nigerian national in the leaked video because it may put the lives and properties of law-abiding citizens in South Africa at risk.
The Nigerian mission, however, condemned the video which it described as a flagrant violation of South Africa’s legislation on combating gender-based violence (GBV) and cyber abuse.
The statement reads, “The Mission unequivocally condemns and distances all law-abiding Nigerians from the egregious and reprehensible violation of Hon Sifuba’s privacy by anyone, whether Nigerian or not.
“We note that the alleged act is a flagrant violation of South Africa’s legislation on combating gender-based violence (GBV) and cyber abuse, and join all well-meaning members of the public to empathise with Hon Sifuba and her family over the regrettable incident.
“While awaiting the outcome of investigations into the real identity of the perpetrator of this heinous crime, the Mission wishes to call on the media to refrain from hasty and definitive conclusions on the nationality of the suspect as this may put the lives and property of law-abiding Nigerians in South Africa at risk,” the Consulate said.
“The Consulate General therefore reassures host authorities of its full support and co-operation towards the identification, tracking, arrest and prosecution of any Nigerian believed to be responsible or complicit in the mindless circulation of the sex video.”
The Nigerian diplomatic mission has also appealed to community members to desist from further circulation of the offensive video “and negative profiling of foreign nationals based on the alleged acts of criminal-minded individuals”.
KanyiDaily had also reported how a female warder was caught on camera having sex with a male inmate in an office at the prison in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.