Cat Matlala: Broker of Power, Money and Mystery

Cat Matlala’s testimony has sketched a web of money, ministers, police and alleged underworld figures around the Medicare24 scandal — but left the Commission guessing whether he is a mere businessman or a broker of power and crime.

By MBULELO BALOYI

FOR three days, businessman Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala has offered the Madlanga Commission a glimpse into a sprawling network of businessmen, political figures, police officers and alleged underworld players.

His testimony has been marked by explosive allegations, awkward financial trails.

His testimony has throughout been peppered by a familiar refrain: when questions get too close to his criminal case, Matlala invokes his right against self-incrimination.

What remains is a web linking the late taxi boss Jotham “Mswazi” Msibi, businessmen Hangwani Morgan Maumela, Suleiman Carrim and Steve Motsumi, former police minister Bheki Cele, suspended minister Senzo Mchunu, former KZN Hawks boss Lesetja Senona and others.

The Msibi Connection

One of the most striking strands has been Matlala’s relationship with Msibi, whom the Commission has previously heard described as an alleged member of the so-called “Big Five” criminal network.

Matlala acknowledged knowing Msibi and providing protection services to him.

He also confirmed that Msibi regarded him as a son. But the relationship went beyond personal association.

The Commission heard evidence suggesting Matlala acted as a conduit between Msibi and Maumela. These include transactions involving millions of rand.

Matlala was questioned about an alleged R4-million payment linked to Maumela and Msibi. He said he did not know what the money was for.He was also confronted with a R3-million R2 payment notification he had sent to Msibi relating to a payment from Maumela to Agrippa Khoza.

Again, Matlala said he could not remember why he had sent it.

For the Commission, the question is whether these were ordinary business dealings or evidence of a much deeper financial network.

Maumela and the Business Government

Matlala described his relationship with Maumela as beginning through their shared interest in luxury cars before evolving into business.

He said the two pooled money to pursue government medical supply opportunities, with profits shared between them.

There was, however, no formal written partnership agreement. Maumela’s importance to the inquiry lies in his wider alleged involvement in government procurement, including matters concerning Tembisa Hospital.

Matlala’s evidence potentially places him at the intersection of private business interests and lucrative state contracts, most importantly, the controversial Medicare24 SAPS health-services tender.

The Carrim Millions

Then there is Carrim.

Matlala told the Commission he received a R15-million loan from businessman Suleiman Carrim.

Carrim’s earlier evidence put the amount at R10 million. That R5-million discrepancy is more than an accounting disagreement.

It forms part of the Commission’s effort to establish how Matlala financed his operations and who stood behind the Medicare24 deal.

Carrim is no longer expected to return to the witness box after the Commission dealt with his failure to appear.

Motsumi’s R5 million

Steve Motsumi also emerged as an important financial connection.

Matlala testified that Motsumi loaned him R5 million in 2024, which he said was used to renovate a hospital at the Pretoria West SAPS College as part of a government-related lease project. He said the loan was formalised and repaid in 2025.

But Motsumi’s significance extends beyond the loan. Earlier evidence before the Commission placed him in discussions involving “grabber” surveillance technology and people associated with Msibi’s network.

His name therefore appears in both the Matlala financial trail and the wider alleged criminal network being examined by the Commission.

Bheki Cele and the Mogotsi Connection

Former police minister Bheki Cele featured prominently in Matlala’s account.

Matlala said Cele instructed him to maintain his relationship with Brown Mogotsi, whom Matlala portrayed as someone with political connections. He said Mogotsi had approached him after a police raid, claiming links to Mchunu’s office. Matlala said he subsequently gave Mogotsi money, including funds linked to investigators and ANC January 8 celebrations.

He estimated that he had given Mogotsi as much as R150,000.

But the most significant Cele revelation came on Wednesday, when Matlala testified that Cele arranged a meeting between him and KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.

Matlala said the meeting took place at the upmarket The Pearls apartments in uMhlanga and initially concerned purchase orders and problems affecting Medicare24. He declined to discuss some aspects of the meeting, citing ongoing court proceedings.

“I Never Met Mchunu”

Matlala has been unequivocal about suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu: he says he never met or interacted with him.

That denial is significant because the Commission has heard extensive evidence about alleged political access involving Mogotsi and Mchunu.

The Senzo and Thembeka Mchunu Foundation also surfaced in the broader evidence when Matlala sent documents about the Foundation to Senona.

But the evidence does not establish that Matlala dealt directly with Mchunu or that the Foundation document proves wrongdoing.

The distinction is important.

The Gen Senona Question

Matlala’s relationship with former KZN Hawks boss Lesetja Senona has also attracted scrutiny.

He admitted receiving a R20,000 loan from Senona after police raided his home and seized his phones in December 2024. Matlala said Senona was like an older brother and had advised him to challenge the cancellation of the Medicare24 contract.

That places a senior police officer directly in the orbit of a businessman whose government contract is now at the centre of the Commission’s investigation.

The Big Question

After three days, the Commission has not been handed a neat confession.

Instead, it has been given connections.

Msibi. Maumela. Carrim. Motsumi. Mogotsi. Cele. Mchunu. Senona.

Millions of rand. Government contracts. Political access. Police relationships.

Alleged underworld links. Matlala has confirmed many of the relationships but repeatedly refused to explain matters he believes could prejudice his criminal case.

That leaves the Commission with its central challenge: was Matlala simply a controversial businessman who cultivated powerful contacts.

Or was he a broker connecting money, politics, policing and organised crime?

The evidence heard this week does not yet provide the final answer. But it has made one thing clear: the Medicare24 scandal is no longer just about a tender. It is about the network surrounding it. TQ