I have never been a spy - State Security Minister
State Security Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba's office finally broke its silence on Wednesday, issuing a late-night statement denying claims made in a weekend newspaper that she had lived a double life for a decade, earning millions as a spy while still an MEC in Limpopo.
The curt statement simply reads: "The State Security Agency (SSA) is ordinarily loathe to comment on its methods and resources.
"However, in light of the article published in Independent Newspapers group on 19 May 2019 alleging that Minister Dipuo Letsatsi-Duba was an agent of the SSA, it is in the public interest element that we respond.
"In this regard we wish to categorically state that Minister Letsatsi-Duba has never been a source or agent of the SSA."
The Sunday Independent reported that four independent and well-placed sources had said her so-called spy activities had been conducted through a front company, Motse Pele Security, which she co-founded with her late husband Mose Jacob Duba in 1996. She was reportedly, until recently, one of the directors.