Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi and MPs Cedric Frolick, Mosebenzi Zwane and Winnie Ngwenya were implicated following a commission of inquiry into allegations of large-scale corruption commonly known as "state capture" under former President Jacob Zuma.

Mr Nxesi was accused of receiving payments from prominent businessman Edwin Sodi. The other three MPs had been implicated in separate graft allegations.

On Tuesday, the parliament’s Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests cleared the four lawmakers of any wrongdoing.

The Zondo commission - named after its chairperson Chief Justice Raymond Zondo -revealed widespread graft involving state-owned entities, in an inquiry that ran between 2018 to 2022.

No one has been convicted in a criminal trial so far.

The commission made over 200 recommendations on criminal investigations and possible prosecution of people and companies implicated in the corruption probe.

President Cyril Ramaphosa said the recommendations would be implemented at the appropriate time.

Zuma resigned in 2018, a year before his second term in office was due to end, because of allegations of corruption.