US expects Mozambique ex-Minister to be handed over

The US said it expected SA to hand over Maputo’s former Finance Minister – held since December on a US warrant over corruption allegations – despite a separate request from Mozambique, notes a Mail & Guardian report. Manuel Chang (63) was arrested at OR Tambo International airport on 29 December over alleged involvement in $2bn of fraudulent loans to Mozambican state firms. US Assistant Secretary of State Tibor Nagy said he expected Pretoria to honour the extradition accord it signed in September 1999. ‘We have an extradition treaty with SA; we are very much expecting (extradition) will happen,’ Nagy told journalists during a phone briefing. The report notes the complex law applicable to the conflicting demands is being considered in court. However, last month Minister of International Relations and Co-operation Lindiwe Sisulu indicated that Chang would be handed to Maputo as it would be ‘the easiest thing for everybody’. The charges against Chang relate to loans taken out by Maputo when he was head of Treasury between 2005 and 2015. The money was allegedly used to secretly buy a tuna-fishing fleet and surveillance ships.