JOHANNESBURG, July 11 (Reuters) – South Africa’s foreign
ministry has suspended a former ambassador to Tehran after
allegations he took a $200,000 bribe to help MTN Group
win a mobile licence in Iran, a spokesman said in a radio
interview on Wednesday.
Clayson Monyela told Talk Radio 702 that Yusuf Saloojee,
currently ambassador to Oman, had been suspended until
investigations into his links to the MTN deal are concluded.
South Africa’s Foreign Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane said
this week in a response to written parliamentary questions that
her department had started an investigation into the allegations
against Saloojee.
Johannesburg-based MTN is being sued by Turkish rival
Turkcell for $4.2 billion. The Turkish company
alleges MTN bribed Saloojee and used other underhanded methods
to win a licence over Turkcell in 2005.
MTN has denied the charges and called Turkcell’s demands
“extortionate”.
An elite South African police unit also launched an
investigation but it has not given details of its investigation.
Saloojee has denied the allegations in statements published
by the South African media.
Shares of MTN were 1.4 percent lower at 144.46 rand at 1416
GMT, underperforming a Top-40 index, which was 0.88
percent down.
(Reporting by Sherilee Lakmidas; editing by David Dolan)
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