Police minister hits back at claims of links to Vusimusi ‘Cat' Matlala
The minister claims he has never met Vusimusi 'Cat' Matlala.
He also says he knows Brown Mogotsi, but that Mogotsi is 'not an associate'.
Police Minister Senzo Mchunu has shot back at KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi's claims, insisting he doesn't know controversial tenderpreneur Vusimusi 'Cat' Matlala.
In an explosive press conference in Durban on Sunday, Mkhwanazi openly declared that the minister was under criminal investigation, alleging that the police's top brass had been infiltrated by underworld actors – among them Matlala, who, News24 previously reported, scored a R360-million health services tender from the SAPS, despite being investigated for procurement fraud at Tembisa Hospital.
The tender has since been cancelled.
In the interim, Matlala was arrested and charged earlier this year for an attempted hit on his former lover, influencer and actress Tebogo Thobejane.
Mkhwanazi said an analysis of Matlala's phone records had uncovered a secret plot to shut down the political killings task team after its members were roped in to assist with cases to which he had been linked.
He also claimed Matlala was financially supporting the minister.
Despite calls for restraint from President Cyril Ramaphosa, Mchunu's office said in a statement on Wednesday that he wanted to 'clarify' that he had 'never met Mr Matlala', had never 'spoken to him, nor has the minister ever requested or received anything from him'.
'The minister did, however, initiate a review of the SAPS tender awarded to him when suspicions of possible wrongdoing surfaced. It was the same tender which has since been terminated,' the statement read.
Over the weekend, Mkhwanazi also pointed to communication between Matlala, a 'Brown Mogotsi', and Mchunu and claimed Matlala was bankrolling Mogotsi's political endeavours.
Mchunu's office added: 'Furthermore, whilst the minister knows and has met Mr Brown Mogotsi, he is just a comrade and not an associate of the minister. The minister has never requested or received anything from him.'
This is in stark contrast to his previous claims in Parliament that he did 'not know this person'.
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