South Africa's finance minister Nhlanhla Nene quits over Gupta scandal

South African finance minister Nhlanhla Nene has stepped down from his post and his resignation was accepted by President Cyril Ramaphosa "in the interests of good governance."

Ramaphosa, in a televised address, confirmed that he accepted Nene's resignation due to "errors of judgment" as a result of a controversy surrounding Nene's testimony in an ongoing graft inquiry, CNN reported.

"After due consideration of the circumstances around this matter and in the interest of good governance, I have decided to accept his resignation," the South African President said.

Following Nene's resignation, former South African Reserve Bank Governor, Tito Mboweni, was sworn-in as the country's new Finance Minister.

Recently, Nene recently admitted in the inquiry that he met the members of the Gupta family, a wealthy household, who had emigrated from India to South Africa decades ago, and established a business empire in the African nation, spanning from media to mining.

The Guptas have been accused of undue political influence, working with former President Jacob Zuma to secure government contracts and determine cabinet appointments. Both the Gupta family and Zuma denied the charges.

In December 2015, Nene was controversially removed from the post by Zuma. He was, however, reappointed by Ramaphosa after he took office in February this year.

The scandal-hit Zuma had resigned in February after he faced massive furore from his own ruling African National Congress (ANC) lawmakers over corruption charges. Following Zuma's resignation, the Gupta brothers fled the country in April and have been absconding since then.

-ANI