Finance minister Tito Mboweni has responded with surprise and anger to reports about controversial prophet Shepherd Bushiri and his wife Mary fleeing the country last week while out on bail.

The pair failed to report to a police station on Friday, as per their bail conditions, and in a statement on Saturday confirmed they had left the country. They claimed they had fled to  preserve their lives after local authorities failed to act on several alleged death threats they had received.

They made several demands of the government before they return to SA.

Mboweni, like many others on social media, was shocked by claims the escape may have something to do with the arrival of Malawi's president Lazarus Chakwera, who flew to SA on Thursday for a brief meeting with President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday.

A senior government official told the Sunday Times the possibility of Chakwera's involvement could not be ruled out, considering his close relationship with Bushiri.

Chakwera's spokesperson Brian Banda and SA's acting presidency spokesperson Tyrone Seale both denied the claims.

When he was criticised for his tweet, Mboweni went on the defensive, claiming the escape had made SA “look bad”.

He said a fugitive could not make demands of the government, and later said he agreed with the sentiment that authorities in SA were “too nice”

In a statement on Sunday, the government said SA had initiated a process to secure the extradition of the couple.

Bushiri and his wife were arrested last month and face charges of theft, money laundering and fraud in connection with an alleged R100m “investment scheme”.

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