Former president Jacob Zuma said that he hoped late Bosasa boss Gavin Watson was not "cleverly removed" by "forces", adding that the way in which he died was mysterious.
He was speaking at Watson's funeral service which was held at the Feather Market Hall in Port Elizabeth on Tuesday.
Zuma said that the report into Watson's death had many "gaps" and he hoped those would be clarified by the investigation into his death when the car the businessman was driving crashed into a concrete barrier outside OR Tambo International Airport on August 26.
The former president referred to Watson as his brother and said that comrades were dying suddenly.
"There are comrades who left us very mysteriously. I hope comrade Gavin will not be counted among those who were cleverly removed from the scene," said Zuma.
Watson and Bosasa was thrust back into the limelight earlier this year when former company CFO Angelo Afrizzi alleged that the late businessman was the mastermind behind Bosasa's allegedly dodgy contracts with the government worth billions of rands.
"We are living in a strange era. Those who fought for our freedom were vilified by the apartheid system and those who were not vilified turned the other way around. Those who fought for our freedom are made to look like the worst," said Zuma.
He said that for decades the Watson family had been under the spotlight and that they had suffered and were harassed due to their contribution to the struggle.
- African News Agency (ANA)
