MK Party Breaks Silence: Why Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla really resigned as MP

The MK Party says Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla was not forced to resign as a member of parliament for the party and that her resignation is not an admission of guilt regarding allegations that 17 South Africans were sent to Russia and ended up on the front lines of the Ukraine war.

The announcement was made during an MK Party press briefing in Durban on Friday.

Magasela Mzobe, head of the party’s presidency, said Zuma-Sambudla’s decision was voluntary.

“Comrade Dudu was never forced to resign. She volunteered because she wanted to focus on helping families return their loved ones,” he said. 

“She submitted her resignation today because she could not do so without taking the leadership into confidence and getting permission.”

Mzobe stressed that the resignation was unrelated to any wrongdoing.

“As far as we know, the resignation has nothing to do with an admission of guilt or the organisation finding her guilty,” he said. 

“She is a disciplined member of the MK and a leader who realised that there is a pressing matter in the country - returning these young people safely home. She requested to be recused from her responsibilities so she could cooperate fully with all organs of the state to find the truth and return these South Africans safely.”

Zuma-Sambudla has been under scrutiny for her alleged role in sending 17 South Africans to Russia, where they were later deployed to the Ukraine war. 

She has previously denied all allegations.

She is also currently on trial in the Durban High Court over the July 2021 unrest, facing charges including terrorism and inciting violence. 

More recently, she has been linked to allegedly luring South African men into the Russia–Ukraine conflict through what they believed was bodyguard training associated with the MK Party.

Meanwhile, MK Party chairperson Nathi Nhleko said the party had received a full report from Zuma-Sambudla regarding the widely publicised case of young South Africans reportedly involved in combat operations in Ukraine.

“Comrade Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla confronted the contents of an affidavit provided to the police. She has declared her full cooperation with ongoing investigations by relevant authorities, as a consequence of which she has tendered her resignation from the National Assembly and all public representative responsibilities with immediate effect,” Nhleko said.

Nhleko, a former police minister, said national officials had accepted her resignation in support of her efforts to help ensure the safe return of the affected South Africans.

“It became apparent after the briefing that Comrade Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla is not involved in the Russia–Ukraine matter affecting these young people,” he said. 

“Our next step as national officials is to engage the families, explain our position as a party, and support them in their efforts for the safe return of these young people.”

He urged the public to treat the matter with sensitivity, adding that details could not be fully disclosed at this stage.

The DA has since laid criminal charges against Zuma-Sambudla for her alleged central role in luring 17 South African men to Russia under the guise of bodyguard training linked to the MK Party. 

The charges include human trafficking, contraventions of South Africa’s anti-mercenary legislation and other offences.

According to the DA, it received around 100 WhatsApp messages from a group allegedly administered by Zuma-Sambudla.

“These messages show clear coordination in luring at least 22 men to Russia under the guise of ‘personal development’, ‘security training’ and even promises of Russian or Canadian citizenship,” the party said.

Families have provided consistent testimonies describing a similar pattern of deception. One mother said her son was “excited for a new life” and believed he would return with foreign citizenship - only to find himself trapped in a war zone.

The DA claims that once the men arrived in Russia, their passports and clothing were burned, their phones confiscated, and communication with their families gradually cut off until it ceased entirely.

“This directly contradicts every promise made to them and constitutes clear indicators of trafficking and coercion,” the party said.

IOL Politics