Matlala explains how dispute over SAPS college premises lease led him to meet Shadrack Sibiya

Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala told the Ad Hoc Committee about how he met Deputy Police Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Shadrack Sibiya, and that their relationship started when he had issues when leasing premises at a SAPS college.

The Ad Hoc Committee established to investigate the allegations made by the South African Police Service (SAPS) KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Head, Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, listened intently as Matlala started explaining his personal history and issues with the police.

Matlala began by stating that he grew up in Mamelodi East, Tshwane, raised by a single mother.

After matric, he started an informal business by buying and selling goods, which led to him being convicted for buying goods which were illegal in 2001. He was sentenced to four years in prison, but he ended up under correctional supervision. 

In 2017, he formally registered his first business, which was a security business, through which he provided security services to construction sites, schools, and expanded into healthcare.

Matlala said that he is married and has nine children with his wife, to which evidence leader, Advocate Norman Arendse S.C. quipped that his nickname “Cat” is because he has nine children or nine lives. “Nine children,” Matlala answered. 

Matlala has several companies listed under his name: Falcon Cat Trading and Suppliers, Black AK Trading and Suppliers, Cor Kabeng Trading, Ride to Own, Cat VIP Holdings, Lavindo's Hair Studio, YVM Yasira Entertainment, Luxo Africa Brand Investments, and Medicare 24 Tshwane District.

He said that several are active, while Lavindo's Hair Studio, Cor Kabeng Trading and YVM Yasira Entertainment are not active. He has also resigned from Ride to Own and Medicare 24 Tshwane District, but still retains 100% shares in the latter.

“I only resigned from Medicare as a director, but I still own 100% shares of Medicare,” Matlala said.

Arendse questioned Matlala about a 2024 lease agreement for a hospital premises at the SAPS training College in Pretoria. It was alleged that Matlala had acquired the facility in anticipation of a tender; however, he claims he wanted to use it as an opportunity to render services to students injured during training.

He explained that he wanted to lease the property from the Department of Public Works, and had been trying for three years to get the lease, but that he was unable to take control of the hospital premises. He was unable to take vacant occupation as it was still controlled by the police.

“I have a lease, but when I went there to do the inspection, I found the members of SAPS in the hospital, and I went back to Public Works as the landlord to tell them there are people who occupy the hospital, to say, can you please facilitate so that I can occupy the hospital, and that is when the police refused.

“I think I ended up sending them a letter, saying that if you won’t let me occupy the hospital, then I will take legal action.”

Matlala confirmed that he still does not occupy the hospital, but that he isn’t in a legal dispute with the SAPS. He wanted to use the premises as an opportunity to render services to those at the college.

Matlala alleges that there is corruption at play, as there are doctors on the premises who are working with the police in order to occupy the SAPS college premises.

“No one can come to your house, and you don’t know who this person is. Someone must have let them in.”

The issue over the property prompted him to organise a meeting with Sibiya. Arendse later questioned Matlala on the specifics of how he met with Sibiya, whom he said he met with three times.

Matlala said the first two meetings had to do with the issues surrounding the hospital lease, and the third meeting had to do with the kidnapping of one of Matlala’s friends, Pretoria businessman Jerry Boshoga.

“I contacted him to arrange a meeting so that I could go there and lay my complaint.”

Arendse commented that it was odd that he was contacting a national commissioner over a matter such as that.

“When you say unusual, what do you mean?” Matlala said. “Maybe if he could see the details of the email, you could understand why he would want to meet with us… I said that I would constitute legal action (over the issue) if our demands are not met.”

Matlala wanted Sibiya to investigate what was happening with the SAPS college, and he met with Sibiya with his lawyer present.

“That college is for national police, that is why I went to him as the head of national detectives.”

theolin.tembo@inl.co.za