Cat Matlala Claims Shadrack Sibiya Threatened His Family Over Commission Testimony

Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala has told the Madlanga Commission that Lieutenant-General Shadrack Sibiya allegedly threatened his wife in an attempt to stop him from revealing information about the senior police official.

The allegation is contained in a witness statement Matlala made during negotiations for a now-collapsed plea agreement with the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC). The statement, which was made public on Monday, relates to the R228 million police tender scandal involving his company, Medicare24.

According to the statement, Sibiya allegedly contacted Matlala's wife, Tsakani, before her husband's appearance before Parliament's ad hoc committee last November.

“Tsakani informed me that Sibiya would constantly threaten her, warning that I should not disclose anything about him (Sibiya) to the ad hoc committee. Otherwise, my life and that of my family would be put in harm’s way,” the statement reads.

However, when questioned about the alleged threats at the commission, Matlala was reluctant to discuss the matter.

“I do not want to make any comments on it. I do not want to put someone’s life at risk; someone’s life should matter,” he said, without identifying the person he wanted to protect.

R500,000 Payment And R228 Million Tender Dispute

The commission previously heard allegations that Sibiya influenced Matlala to change an affidavit submitted to the High Court in Pretoria, in which he had detailed his relationship with the senior police official.

Matlala's witness statement also alleged that he paid Sibiya R500,000 because “a lot was done to ensure” that the R228 million SAPS health tender was awarded to Medicare24.

The statement reportedly linked the payment to Matlala's friend, Given Makofane, whose bank account was allegedly used to facilitate the transaction.

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However, Matlala denied paying Sibiya R500,000, despite the allegation appearing in two statements. He conceded that he had given Sibiya R50,000 but denied that the police official helped him secure the tender.

Sibiya, meanwhile, previously denied receiving money from Matlala during his testimony before the commission.

Matlala Disputes Statements Made To IDAC Investigators

Matlala told the commission that he made the witness statement to IDAC chief investigator Dylan Perumal after being promised that he and his family would receive witness protection if he provided information about senior police officials.

He alleged that Perumal, together with senior investigators Suneel Bellochun and Brian Padayachee, booked him out of prison and took him to the Sheraton Pretoria Hotel and a McDonald's restaurant near the prison while the statement was being prepared.

During cross-examination, Matlala disputed several claims contained in the document, describing some of them as false. He suggested that Perumal, who typed the statement, may have inserted information that he had not provided.

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Among the disputed allegations was a claim that he paid former public works deputy minister Bernice Swarts R80,000 through Sibiya.

The statement alleged that Sibiya had told Matlala that Swarts needed money to buy alcohol for a traditional ceremony. It further claimed that Matlala handed Sibiya R80,000 in cash at the arrivals area of OR Tambo International Airport to pass on to Swarts.

A separate passage alleged that Sibiya later told Matlala that Swarts wanted R200,000 in exchange for assisting with the authorisation of a lease agreement.

Matlala denied making these payments, telling the commission that he already had the lease for the public works property at the police training college in Pretoria when he met Swarts.

He also claimed that IDAC investigators were trying to build a case against senior police officials, including National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola.

“They told me that they are not after [me], but ‘we need to arrest so that we can get the people we want to pursue.’ I asked them who those people are; they mentioned Masemola, [Lt-Gen Nhlanhla] Mkhwanazi and [Lt-Gen Dumisani] Khumalo,” he said.

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Matlala was required to answer questions about the witness statement after commission chairperson Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga ruled that legal restrictions on using documents from collapsed plea agreements applied to criminal trials, rather than commission proceedings.

Matlala withdrew from his plea agreement negotiations in July after submitting the statement as part of the process.

His lawyer, Advocate Annelene van den Heever, has indicated that the defence intends to challenge Madlanga's ruling through a review application. She criticised the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) for handing the witness statement to the commission, arguing that it had acted beyond its legal powers.

Van den Heever warned that the ruling could discourage accused people from entering plea agreements with the state because they could not be assured that information provided during negotiations would remain protected.