The Office of Deputy President David Mabuza could neither confirm, nor deny that he had previously done business with or was still friends with Patrick Donald Chirwa, who appeared in the dock this week alongside ANC MP Bongani Bongo and nine others for alleged land deal graft to the tune of R124 million.
Chirwa has been described in news reports as a friend and close ally of Mabuza.
But Mabuza distanced himself from the alleged fraud and corruption, which occurred during his tenure as Mpumalanga premier in 2011 and 2012.