Shaik, who took the witness stand yesterday in the Durban High Court in a high-risk gamble aimed at proving his innocence, traced his early political and business history and described the strong personal bonds between himself and Zuma.

He acknowledged in his plea at the start of the trial that he had made payments for Zuma’s benefit totalling more than R1m, but he took the opportunity of his first day of testimony to deny that the intention behind the payments had been bribery.

Four months after pleading not guilty to two counts of corruption and one of fraud, the businessman said the state’s accusation of bribery did “not reflect the relationship I have with the deputy president”.

He said Zuma was one of the first people to return to SA in 1990 “after 33 years in exile”.

Shaik said the deputy president was currently 70, which meant he had been in his late 50s when he returned home.

However, according to the ANC website www.anc.org.za/ people/zumaj.html, Zuma was born in April 1942 which means he is 63, and he was in exile between 1975 and 1990, a period of 15 years.

Shaik said Zuma returned to SA “in a much-deprived position”. Whereas he had a house, a car and “a fairly good standard of living” *1 , Zuma did not.

He said he had wanted Zuma to have the same *2.

Shaik told the court that after the unbanning of the ANC in 1990 the relationship between him and Zuma “solidified further”. He said their families interacted especially over religious periods like Christmas as well as over weekends. “My dad and Mr Zuma were very close,” Shaik said.

He later also covered the rentals when Zuma “fell behind on the payments”.

Shaik said the ANC was “always seeking funding”. Having established Floryn Investments as his vehicle through which to make party donations, he considered the payments an essential duty from a growing entrepreneur. “The ANC belongs to all of us … it was very clear to me and my family that we needed to think about others before ourselves *3,” he said.

Shaik testified about the early years of his business career, explaining to the court the close relationship he developed with diversified Malaysian company Renong, which was established to assist in the development of poor, indigenous Malaysians.

He even earned a “substantial sum” ­ about R1m ­ when he brokered a deal between South African company Plessey and Renong that led to the two companies setting up a joint venture in Malaysia. Shaik said he had been inspired by this idea of establishing a company to benefit the disadvantaged, and planned to import the idea to SA.

Documents presented at the trial suggest he wanted the ANC to take up a 20% stake in his company, and provision was also made for Zuma to separately hold a small stake.

However, the plans were abruptly dropped after Shaik was called in by then president Nelson Mandela and deputy president Thabo Mbeki, who told Shaik the ANC did not wish to engage in this kind of development model.

The state closed its case last week after winning a major victory when Judge Hillary Squires allowed a fax allegedly implicating Shaik, Zuma and French arms company Thomson-CSF in a R500 000 annual bribe.

Defence counsel Francois van Zyl has remained tight-lipped about who may be called to offer backing to Shaik’s version of the events. Shaik is expected to lead evidence for the rest of the week before the prosecution gets a chance to cross-examine him.

With ackowledgements to Nicola Jenvey, Tim Cohen and Business Day.

*1  At least two cars: an Mercedes ML430, Mercedes E230, a house in Killarney, another in Durban, a traditional village in Nkandla, some imported suits from Cassanova, private school education for the younger sons and daughters, university fees for the older ones, a good job at R9 000 per month at Nkobi Transport for the one son's ex-girlfriend and a monthly R10 000 to R15 000 of coooool drinks and TLC on the back nine at the Royal Durban.

*2  If this is bumiputera, I'm all for it - for all - Viva.

*3  Like the other 38 million hapless souls in the RSA?