Dudu Myeni
Duduzile “Dudu” Cynthia Myeni (29 October 1963 – 14 June 2024) was a South African businesswoman, a long-serving Chairperson of South African Airways (SAA) and Executive Chairperson of the Jacob Zuma Foundation. A close personal ally of former President Jacob Zuma, Myeni became a central figure in the state capture era. She died from cancer on 14 June 2024, aged 60, while criminal proceedings against her were ongoing.
Myeni was appointed to the SAA board in 2009 and became chairperson in 2012. During her five-year tenure as chair (2012/13–2016/17), SAA ran up losses of R16.844 billion. She repeatedly undermined SAA’s management, interfered in procurement decisions without board approval, and obstructed executives attempting to stabilise the airline. The most consequential incident: in late 2015, without involving SAA management, she unilaterally attempted to renegotiate SAA’s Airbus lease agreement to an opaque “third-party” purchase arrangement. When Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene rejected the deal, she reportedly lobbied Zuma to remove him. Zuma dismissed Nene in December 2015, triggering a massive rand fall and market chaos, before appointing Pravin Gordhan four days later.
At the Zondo Commission, Angelo Agrizzi testified that Bosasa paid Myeni R300,000 per month in cash as a conduit to Jacob Zuma — described as “bags of cash and NPA documents.” The commission (Vol 1) found “overwhelming and corroborated” evidence that Myeni unlawfully benefited from State Security Agency (SSA) resources — including trained SSA operatives assigned overseas as her bodyguards. Zondo found that Zuma “could not have justified his insistence that Myeni be retained” as SAA chair given her conduct. He recommended she face criminal charges.
In May 2020, the Pretoria High Court (Judge Ronel Tolmay) declared Myeni a Delinquent Director for life, banning her from holding any directorship at any entity. The court found she “failed abysmally in executing her fiduciary duty” and was “a director gone rogue.” OUTA and the SA Airways Pilots’ Association had brought the application based on the Emirates deal and Airbus swap transaction. Myeni was arrested on fraud and corruption charges in September 2023. She died before trial concluded.
Connections
- Jacob Zuma — close personal ally; conduit for Bosasa R300k/month cash payments; Zuma protected her position at SAA against ministerial objections
- Bosasa (African Global Operations) — received monthly cash payments (per Agrizzi testimony); Zondo Vol 3 confirmed
- South African Airways (SAA) — chairperson 2012–2017; R16.8bn losses under her tenure; governance failures led to airline’s near-collapse
- Zondo Commission — Vol 1 recommended criminal charges; Vol 3 (Bosasa) found her as conduit for Zuma payments
- Angelo Agrizzi — testified against her at Zondo Commission; described “bags of cash” payments
- State Security Agency (SSA) — SSA operatives unlawfully assigned as her personal protection abroad
- Gupta Family — both were parallel Zuma-aligned networks; Gupta-influenced Eskom board appointments run parallel to her SAA governance role
- Arthur Fraser — Fraser as SSA DG oversaw the SSA resources unlawfully provided to Myeni