Mac Maharaj, South Africa's former transport minister, has taken a three-month leave of absence from his job as a director of one of the country's biggest banking groups.

The announcement by FirstRand Limited follows a Sunday Times exposé last week which revealed that he had received payments from a company which won two multimillion transport contracts.

Maharaj has declined to comment on documents which showed that he and his wife received payments and gifts worth more than R500 000 from Durban-based businessman Schabir Shaik, who is under investigation by the Scorpions for his role in the country's arms deal.

Most of the payments and gifts were given before Maharaj left the Cabinet in 1999. Last week Maharaj told the Sunday Times that the tender documents for the N3 toll road and the credit card drivers' licence contracts were "a matter of public record," but declined to elaborate.

Under the parliamentary code of conduct, gifts and benefits worth more than R350 received by members, their spouses, companions or dependent children must be declared.

But not one of the gifts or payments from Shaik or his company, Nkobi Holdings, is logged in Maharaj's parliamentary register of members' interests.

FirstRand, in a statement, said the group's board had agreed to Maharaj's offer to take a leave of absence from the various boards on which he serves. He will be paid for the three months during which the company hoped he would be able to focus "fully" on resolving the payments raised in the Sunday Times.

Maharaj initially also offered to resign to avoid any potential embarrassment to the FirstRand group, the statement said.

With acknowledgements to Jessica Bezuidenhout and the Sunday Times.