CC image courtesy of GovernmentZA on Flickr
The South African National Treasury has said a Twitter account created for newly appointed finance minister Nhlanhla Nene is fake.
Nene, who was promoted to finance minister last night by President Jacob Zuma, previously served as deputy to former finance minister Pravin Gordhan.
The account was created yesterday, shortly after the appointment.
“My brains did not fallout [sic] when I fell off that chair. I won’t collapse the SA economy. Have faith in me, fellow South Africans,” a Tweet from the account read, referencing an incident in 2008 in which Nene’s chair broke beneath him on a live television interview.
However in a statement today the treasury responded to the creation of the account, saying it is fake.
“The Ministry of Finance would like to warn the public that the Twitter account with a handle @NhlanhlaNeneZA is counterfeit,” it said.
“Minister Nene does not have a Twitter account.”
In the fifteen hours of its existence the fake account has gathered 3,500 followers.
Numerous high profile individuals, including Democratic Alliance leader Helen Zille, fell for remarks made on the fake account.
“You’ll have our support for economic growth and job creation. Good luck and congrats,” Zille said to the owner of the bogus account.
