Jacob Zuma's R65m home expansion

Jacob Zuma has prompted anger with a reported R65m expansion of his personal residence in one of the country's poorest regions.

Zuma's rural homestead will gain a police station, helipad, military clinic, visitors' centre, parking lot for 40 vehicles and three houses, according to South Africa's Mail & Guardian newspaper, which claimed taxpayers would foot "the largest chunk of the bill".

New houses are apparently being built to accommodate Zuma's three wives, the paper said. Critics accused the president of "conspicuous consumption in the face of dire poverty".

The rural family homestead is in Nkandla, in KwaZulu-Natal province, where many of Zuma's neighbours lack electricity or running water. Official figures show that more than half of KwaZulu-Natal's 10 million population live in poverty, with 1.2 million surviving on less than R200 a month. Sources told the paper that the expansion will cost an estimated R65m.

Polygamy is common in rural KwaZulu and Zuma is no exception. His residence has a house for his first wife, Sizakele Khumalo. More are reportedly being built to accommodate his other wives, Nompumelelo Ntuli and Thobeka Mabhija. The houses will have thatched roofs and contain his-and-hers bathrooms, walk-in closets and a study. One will contain four bedrooms; the smaller will have three.

The costly transformation was criticised as insensitive a day after Zuma warned that more jobs could be lost because of a recession that has put nearly a million out of work. William Gumede, a political author, said: "A massive house in South Africa costs R10m, so why spend R65m? … It's conspicuous consumption in the face of dire poverty."

The South African presidency said no government funding would be used for Zuma's household, but the state would be responsible for the adjacent developments. "We … reject any insinuation that there could be any untoward abuse of state resources by the president or his family," it said.