Matlala claims he made big cash deliveries to Cele

Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala told parliament’s ad hoc committee he made two cash payments totalling half a million rand to former police minister Bheki Cele.

He told members of the parliamentary committee investigating the infiltration of the criminal justice system the cash was delivered in Woolworths shopping bags at his Pretoria penthouse and the Beverly Hills Hotel in Umhlanga.

He said Cele demanded the money as a gesture of “appreciation” for assistance in halting police harassment, including raids on his home and office.

Cele has denied receiving any money from Matlala.

Evidence leader Norman Arendse pressed Matlala on WhatsApp exchanges purportedly between him and information peddler Brown Mogotsi. Matlala disputed the authenticity of several messages, claiming his phone had been manipulated by the police to plant evidence.

He conceded that his number may have been saved under the name “Dlamini”, which he said was his grandmother’s surname, but insisted that “most” of the messages were fabricated. He also alleged that his voice had been tampered with in recordings presented at the Madlanga commission.

Matlala acknowledged that he had entertained Mogotsi at Cele’s advice, saying, “I was trying to string him along.”

He told the committee that Cele had urged him to keep engaging with Mogotsi because it might lead investigators to Senzo Mchunu.

He confirmed that he had met KwaZulu-Natal Hawks head Maj-Gen Lesetja Senona and provincial commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, with Cele arranging the meeting at the Pearls in Umhlanga.

Matlala said he complained about not receiving purchase orders for the R360m Medicare24 Tshwane district contract and admitted that Mkhwanazi suggested he might need to pay the HR head responsible for procurement, a proposal he described as “unethical” but not unlawful.

The inquiry also heard evidence about Matlala’s relationship with business person Jerry Boshoga, who has been linked to narcotics and was reportedly kidnapped.

Matlala described Boshoga as a “close friend” to whom he had lent R1m but denied involvement in the drug trade. He conceded that “it is possible” drug money was repaid into his business account but insisted he was not comfortable with Boshoga’s activities.

MPs pressed him on whether he knew Boshoga’s whereabouts; Matlala said he last heard in court that he had not been found.

Arendse highlighted testimony that Matlala had been seen with large sums of cash and travelled with convoys of bodyguards, which he claimed was both for personal safety and to market his security business.

He confirmed that his sister, Claudette Masethe, withdrew funds from the Medicare24 account used for payments to Cele, and that bank statements would show the transactions.