Johannesburg - Home Affairs Minister Malusi Gigaba has roped in private investigators to get to the bottom of an alleged cellphone hack that resulted in a video containing material of a sexual nature" intended only for his wife and himself being leaked on social media.
Gigaba on Sunday morning confirmed that the video, which was stolen when his phone was hacked in 2016/2017, has been used in an attempt to blackmail him and is now circulating among politicians.
In a series of tweets, Gigaba revealed that the video was first used to try and blackmail him when he was appointed finance minister in March 2017.
He rebuffed the attempt and reported the incident to the relevant authorities.
Now it appears the video has surfaced again - and this time it is circulating among politicians.
He reported the matter to authorities but when it yielded no results, roped in a private investigation firm to help resolve the matter.
Gigaba's spokesperson has since Vuyo Mkhize confirmed the hacking to eNCA and that the matter had been reported to the various entities.
"He went to report the matter firstly to the police, and when he encountered problems opening a case with the police, he reported it to Ipid. When he got no joy, he decided to go to the minister of intelligence.
"We've not had an update for a while, so I think on Monday he will engage with them just to establish how far they are with their investigation. We'll also check with a private investigating entity we also engaged around the time... so we'll be checking with them so see how far they are.
Gigaba's spokesperson also confirmed that the video does not feature the minister's wife Norma. It is reportedly a video of Gigaba alone, which he made for his wife.
Gigaba has since apologised to his family for the embarrassment which they may suffer as a result of the video which he says was "meant for our eyes only".
The minister's revelations have since drawn mixed reaction on social media, with some users calling on the minister to resign over the "embarrassing" matter while others took a lighter approach to the alleged leak.
The saga also sparked debate on whether or not the alleged leaking was an invasion of the minister's privacy.
See some comments below:
This is such a invasion of people’s privacy. Don’t be an accomplice to this violation folks. Even ministers are entitled to some privacy. https://t.co/zwcBRhR2ok
— Thabiso TT Tema (@ThabisoTema) October 28, 2018
Posting or sharing Home Affairs Minister #Gigaba's private video on social media is just absolutely wrong! Don't be complicit in ruining someone's life.
— Ulrich Janse van Vuuren (@UlrichJvV) October 28, 2018
Sorry but this is rubbish. That he is a cabinet minister doesnt mean that 1. He doesnt have a sex life 2. That this sex life is any of our business 3. That we get to dictate what it should look like. The “sexual crime” here is this video being shared without his consent https://t.co/KoUF7eL52E
— Nolwazi Tusini (@NolwAzi_Tusini) October 28, 2018
No! No! No! That is not right. This is a violation of the Gigaba's privacy and so many rights. Any contestation must be based on principle & the one issue has nothing to do with the other. Tape issue & blackmail are wrong and despicable. Nobody deserves that. It is an attack https://t.co/nJuzD7pf4O
— Redi Tlhabi (@RediTlhabi) October 28, 2018
My Brother @mgigaba you don’t owe the public any apology! We relate to you in your profession not your personal life. Do you my brother and whatever it takes to keep the romance on edge! But here’s my advise to you! pic.twitter.com/rRVYcxgi00
— Tbo Touch (@iamtbotouch) October 28, 2018