Pumza Filani
speaker
43 appearances
2 recordings
1 series
first heard Nov 2025
last heard 10 Jun
Pumza Filani’s voice in public audio — every appearance, attributed to the second.
Trend
recordings per month · last 12 monthsRecordings per month over the last 12 months — 2 in all, peaking in Jun 2026 with 1.
Appearances
The region that they're believed to have come from, which is KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape, I can tell you, is some of the poorest parts of the country where unemployment is increasingly high.
So while their names or identities are not known yet,
we do know about the circumstances that they are likely to have come from.
But we know, of course, from the presidency spokesperson, Vincent Maguena, who I spoke to earlier today, that a part of their investigation will look at exactly the circumstances that led them there.
Initial reports suggest that they were lured
to that country under the prospect of earning high salaries working either in Russia or within that region.
And it's believed that they've then instead found themselves working as mercenaries in the conflict.
A part of that will depend on what the investigation uncovers.
And the reason I say that is that South Africans largely are not people that have appetite for war.
In fact, they will often be found on the side of wanting to find a peaceful resolution to a conflict.
And if it's clear who the underdog is, will likely be wanting to side with that underdog.
Over the last few years here, a number of civil society organizations have expressed their
The unhappiness that South Africa initially wasn't coming out stronger in condemning Russia when it became clearer or there were clearer suggestions on who the aggressor in the conflict is.
And that's a sentiment that prevails here.
So while they may find empathy or sympathy amongst people who understand the difficult economic conditions that millions of South Africans face, it will be difficult for people to empathize if it's found then that they actively participated in the war, knowing what they were going into.
Certainly.
In fact, it's part of a growing concern across Africa.
My own colleague Mayeni Jones recently did a report from speaking to South Sudanese nationals who shared their own report of how they were promised jobs working in various parts of Russia and instead found themselves working building drones.
So it seems to be part of a growing concern here.
And it's something that President Ramaphosa has spoken very harshly against, saying that vulnerable people in communities are
Showing 21–40 of 43 · page 2 of 3
← Previous
Next →