Gupta’s Oakbay Claims SA Press Report is Smear Campaign with Zero Evidence

JOHANNESBURG – Oakbay has responded to allegations in the Sunday Times today that the Guptas may have been illegally sending money out of South Africa. According to the Times report, the Reserve Bank has asked the Bank of Baroda in India to release documents related to Gupta accounts.

In a statement released on behalf of the Oakbay Investments, it claimed today’s story in the Sunday Times “continues the traditional tactics of Oakbay’s detractors which generally involve some, if not all, of the following: Leaks; Smears; Faceless ‘sources’; Zero evidence;
Lies; and Repeating the lies until they get accepted as truth.”

Nazeem Howa, CEO of Oakbay Investments, said: “We are very happy to work directly with the Reserve Bank to resolve any questions around ourselves. We are very clear that we have done nothing wrong.

“To date, we have had no contact from the Reserve Bank or any other institution around these unfounded allegations and we would expect any respected journalist to ensure on the record confirmation rather than rely on faceless sources.

“It is of great concern to us that nameless government sources collaborate with the Sunday Times in the ongoing campaign to isolate and threaten any party who come close to working with us.

“This is another step in the ongoing campaign to further prevent us from working with any bank, so we can’t pay our thousands of workers, who are ordinary South African citizens.

“It is clear that the biggest problem in this country – jobs – and the lack of them – doesn’t matter to some elements of the business establishment.”