Cyril frequently stops at Tembisa Hospital 'looter's' mansion, says neighbour

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa is a frequent visitor to alleged Tembisa Hospital looter Hangwani Maumela's house.

This is according to a neighbour living on the exclusive Sandton street where Maumela's mansion was raided by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) last week in connection with the R2bn Tembisa Hospital scandal.

Following mounting pressure on his alleged links to Maumele, Ramaphosa admitted to knowing Maumela during a question and answer session in Parliament this week. He previously denied ever meeting him.

The SIU has identified Maumela as the primary beneficiary of a syndicate tied to 1,728 procurement bundles worth R816 million, involving 41 suppliers.

Last week the SIU used a convoy of removal trucks to remove Maumela's fleet of luxury cars, including three Lamborghinis, each worth several million rands, from his three-story house.

Last month, the SIU was granted an order to freeze the assets of Maumela, who was flagged as a leader of one of the syndicates in the Tembisa Hospital scandal, which was first exposed by murdered whistleblower Babita Deokaran.

The SIU investigation which spanned 2018 to 2023, revealed a sprawling network of corruption, maladministration and procurement fraud at Tembisa Hospital, involving three major syndicates including Maumele allegedly responsible for looting more than R2 billion of public funds.

Ramaphosa's spokesperson Vincent Magwenya recently denied that the president had any relationship with Maumele saying a video footage of Ramaphosa outside Maumela's home was a coincidence.

He maintained this claim during a media briefing on Monday, only for Ramaphosa to admit the following day that he had met Maumela outside his house in 2023 and 2024 while walking in his neighbourhood.

Ramaphosa also disclosed that his first wife was Maumela's aunt, a marriage that ended 43 years ago.

A neighbour in the affluent area, said that Maumela’s house was a frequent stop on Ramaphosa’s walks.

"It was not the first time Ramaphosa stopped at Maumela’s gate during his walks.”

Magwenya, did not respond to numerous calls and messages for comment.

Political analyst Zakhele Ndlovu said Ramaphosa was being “economical with the truth” and “insulting the intelligence of the public".

Ndlovu found it inconceivable that Ramaphosa, with his access to intelligence services, would not have known about Maumela’s high-profile and flamboyant lifestyle, especially given the house’s prominence on his walking route.

Another political analyst, Sipho Seepe, said the more Ramaphosa tried to explain his relationship, or the lack thereof with Hangwani Maumela, "the more ridiculous he sounds".

Seepe questioned the effectiveness of presidential security, arguing they would be required to know the identities of neighbours, especially those related to the president.

“Being related to a criminal does not make you one. Ramaphosa didn’t have to pretend not to know who Maumela was or is."

Cape Times