Active in the African National Congress (ANC) and later the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), Manyi became a significant figure in South Africa's political landscape.

In August 2009, the government announced that President Jacob Zuma had appointed Manyi as director-general in the Department of Labour, then still under the political leadership of Minister Membathisi Mdladlana.

[17] In September 2010, three former presidents of BMF called for Manyi's removal from office in a press conference, primarily because of his closeness to government and the ANC but also because of his "frightening brand of arrogance, amateurism and lack of logic".

[19] In April 2010, at a BMF symposium attended by President Zuma,[20] Manyi argued that the South African Constitution "does not support the transformation agenda in this country", pointing in particular to several provisions which he believed required reconsideration.

The Norwegian ambassador subsequently expressed concerns to the South African government, specifically to Foreign Affairs Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, regarding Manyi's conduct during the meeting.

Manyi, in response to the incident, stated that the discussion about BEE policies arose naturally during the meeting as part of the broader conversation on economic challenges and opportunities.

He explained that he offered the diplomats a presentation on BEE to clarify its purpose and implementation, aiming to assist them in understanding the policy's role in South Africa's economic framework.

The report mentioned that during the meeting, Manyi had offered the Norwegian delegation an opportunity to pay the BMF for BEE training, which could be seen as an inappropriate use of his government position to benefit a private organization (Public Protector, 2011).

Some reports suggested that the suspension might be linked to a previous diplomatic incident involving the Norwegian Ambassador to South Africa, Tor Christian-Hildan, who had raised concerns about Manyi's conduct during a meeting in March 2010 (Smith, 2010).

At the time of his transfer, Manyi chose not to comment on the details surrounding his departure from the Department of Labour, opting for a measured response amid ongoing speculation (Green, 2011).

On 2 February 2011, the office of President Zuma announced that Manyi would be appointed, with immediate effect, as the director-general of the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS), in which capacity he would also serve as official spokesman for the cabinet.

Amid a broader political row about employment equity legislation, the trade union Solidarity drew attention to remarks that Manyi had made while still labour director-general during a March 2010 television appearance on KykNet's Robinson Regstreeks.

[32] The ANC's own Tripartite Alliance partner, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), called for an investigation of Manyi's conduct, which it said "casts serious aspersions on his suitability for senior public office".

However, Mona, also said that, "Concern has to be expressed about the fact that this issue has resurfaced, seemingly as part of a vendetta against Mr Manyi, who was recently appointed as government spokesperson – a Cabinet decision that many have sought to undermine".

[1] The saga became memorable partly because of the ferocious response of Trevor Manuel, a struggle stalwart then serving as a Minister in the Presidency, who published an open letter in the Mercury in which he accused Manyi of being "a racist in the mould of H. F.

The choice facing us is very clear: do we stand behind the humane and generous values of Minister Manuel, or do we, by staying silent, lend our support to the mischievous and dangerous notions of Mr Manyi.

Ngobeni accused Manuel of being "a gangster of the worst kind", of acting as though he was "the king of Coloured people", and of seeking to undermine President Zuma and his cabinet through his "cowardly, unwarranted and racist attacks on Manyi".

"[45] He maintained that his remarks about Coloureds had been "grossly misrepresented" and said that the response of academics and analysts, who had criticised him in the media without taking the time to understand his view, had led him to "los[e] all respect for these so-called experts".

'"[57] As the centralisation process was rolled out in 2012, DA leader Mmusi Maimane accused of Manyi of assembling a "propaganda machine" and of seeking "to shield the government's advertising expenditure from public scrutiny".

In mid-2011, the Sunday Times advised Manyi, "you should not accept a job as cabinet's spokesman if you hate dealing with the press",[60] while a Mail & Guardian editorial said that Manyi "is increasingly reminding me of a mash-up of George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four and the movie This Is Spinal Tap... Because there seems to be a desire, à la the Spinal Tap amplifier that has a volume knob that goes up to 11, to ramp up the vitriol and doublespeak when it comes to portraying 'the media' in South Africa".

[62] In this context, appearing on Radio 702 on 21 June, Manyi launched a personal attack on SANEF's respected chairperson, Mondli Makhanya of Avusa Media, whom he accused of fostering anti-government hostility among journalists through his "cartel-like tendencies".

[70] Manyi continued at the head of GCIS until mid-2012, and in January of that year, he was additionally appointed by Zuma to a three-year term on the five-person board of the Media Development and Diversity Agency.

[74] By then, Manyi was in fact the owner of the defunct New Age (see below), and he argued that the newspaper, quite contrary to being an instrument of state capture, had threatened the interests of white media monopolists, who, in collaboration with the National Treasury, had created "this monster called the Guptas" as a diversionary narrative.

[74] The Zondo Commission, in its first installment of the final report released in January 2022, unequivocally rejected Mzwanele Manyi's defense regarding his actions during his tenure as Chief Executive Officer of the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS).

Consequently, Manyi was identified as a "facilitator" of state capture, and GCIS under his leadership was labeled an "enabler" of the corrupt activities linked to the Gupta family's influence over the Zuma administration (Zondo Commission, 2022).

[102] He reprised this argument on several occasions,[103][104] and additionally argued in March 2017 that ANC policies, including the Public Finance Management system, had been "infiltrated" and now served white monopoly capital.

[107] Manyi also spearheaded the PPF's vociferous opposition to the Financial Intelligence Centre Amendment Bill, which updated anti-money laundering measures to meet international standards.

Though the Business Day reported that he had been forced to resign due to his association with the Guptas,[115] Manyi said that he was leaving to focus on his other responsibilities, especially assisting with the launch of the PPF's youth and student wings.

Among other things, the foundation asked the Public Protector to investigate three former finance ministers – Trevor Manuel, Pravin Gordhan and Nhlanhla Nene – for dereliction of duty in connection with the approval of dodgy tenders for the construction of the Medupi and Kusile power stations.

[86] Manyi said that the media companies would retain their earlier strategy of pursuing advertising business with the state, promising, "I'll be knocking on government doors unapologetically because they talk about radical economic transformation, so I'll be saying: 'Stay true to your word'.