After almost three months of sitting in court and listening to the state's allegations against him, Durban businessman Schabir Shaik Monday entered the witness box to relate his side of the story at his fraud and corruption trial.

Dressed in a charcoal suit, crisp shirt and striped tie, Shaik confidently told the Durban High Court that allegations he bribed Jacob Zuma for his influence are "untrue and clearly [do] not reflect the relationship I have with the deputy president".

When Shaik entered the witness box, he seemed somewhat nervous and his voice shook when he told the court of his introduction to Zuma and their friendship during the apartheid struggle.

He said the friendship strengthened to the point that when Zuma returned after a 33-year exile, Shaik hoped to give him a 2,5% share in his Nkobi group so he could start a new life.

"He is my friend. I was not just close to him but I was also aware of his financial constraints. I was looking to find a way to financially empower him," said Shaik.

He said he had a "quite good standard of living" with cars, a house and money, and he wanted Zuma to have the same.

Shaik told the court that Zuma introduced him to the "great Thomas Nkobi", who was the treasurer of the ANC, and also Shaik's partner in the dream to implement Malaysia's empowerment model in South Africa.

However, according to Shaik, President Thabo Mbeki dashed their hopes when he advised Shaik during a meeting to pursue it independently as "he did not want the perception that the ANC had shareholding in this business".

Shaik said the document produced by the state, allegedly showing that the ANC had shares in his company, was merely a "thought pattern" - he hoped to give the political party a 2,5% share.

"This did not materialise. I can assure you that the ANC did not have shares in my group or any of its subsidiaries," he said.

Shaik said that because the "ANC belongs to all of us" he was bound to ensure that it was financially catered for. He apparently paid for rent, accommodation and vehicles for ANC members *1.

He said that although he believed it was the ANC's duty to pay for a "safe house" for Zuma when he received death threats, he paid the rent for the Malington (*2) Place apartment that he found for Zuma.

Shaik yesterday admitted that he made payments to and on behalf of Zuma, but said this was done because of their strong friendship.

Zuma looked to him as his economic adviser *3 because he could teach the then KwaZulu-Natal economic affairs and tourism MEC how to promote economic development in the province.

Judge Hillary Squires asked why Shaik accompanied Zuma on a Malaysian business trip when he was only his provincial economic adviser.

Shaik said he was Zuma's confidant and although he received no remuneration for his role as adviser, he was always there for the deputy president.

Shaik's testimony revealed that he had close ties with Malaysia and a 20% share in the Renong's South African headquarters. This was the company that was hoping to develop Durban Point.

Shaik worked as an agent and would commission South African companies to work with the Malaysian company.

According to his evidence, he received a "substantial" amount from working with Malaysian companies.

The trial continues today.

With acknowledgements to Nivashni Nair and The Natal Witness.

*1  This he certainly did - Viz. Mr Z. Mkhize

*2  Yeah, Ms Nair is the first journalist to get the spelling right for a long time, although half the problem is that Nkobi got it wrong in their own books.

*3  This is empowerment - exam-cheating, qualification-lying, instrument mechanician becomes post-revolution provincial economics advisor - Viva.

*4  Except his beneficiary was not the deputy president at that time (1995), but only the Provincial Minister of Tourism and Economic Affairs [bad on facts, bad on chronology M'Lord].

Or like Nostradamus as well as his brudder Chippy, did he also know that JGZ would be deputy president one day *5.

*5  On July 9, 1998, Thomson-CSF's Mr Many Named de Bollardiere had a meeting with Chippy Shaik, the Chief of Acquisitions. In a subsequent letter to his colleagues, de Bollardiere indicated that Chippy’s position was that if Thomson’s partners and friends suited him, he would make things easier and if not, he would make things difficult. Chippy also told de Bollardiere that Zuma would because deputy president after the next election a year hence.

A few months later in mid-December 1998, Chippy phoned brudder Schabir to phone udder bigger brudder JZ, hello, to say he was having difficulty hanging on to the exclusivity of Thomson-CSF and ADS supplying the corvette combat suite and help was urgently needed in this regard.

This was surely because BAeSEMA, a 50%-owned subsidiary of British Aerospace, had just convinced the German Frigate Consortium to issue them with a Request for Offer for the Command and Control Segment of the Corvette Combat Suite, which indeed was issued on 21 December 1998.

By that time CelciusTech, a subsidiary of Saab, remember them - they make a reasonable Sports Utility Vehicle and an accident prone fourth generation light fighter aircraft - already had an unsolicited proposal for a Corvette Combat Suite on the GFC's table.

Interventions at the highest political level in the Republic of South Africa meant that the GFC never even got to see BAeSEMA's or CelciusTech's proposals.

Da bigger brudder had finally come home.