Bonang chins up in court
TV star’s court case postponed
TV star and businesswoman Bonang Matheba was all smiles as she left Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Johannesburg yesterday morning where she appeared on tax fraud allegations. Matheba told journalists outside court that she felt positive and that “life is good”. She stands accused of not paying personal tax from 2008 to 2017 and company tax from 2014 to 2017. Her lawyer Charl Coetzee told the court that the star’s team has had several discussions and were in the process of making representations to the state. Coetzee said they would complete these representations within the next 12 days and asked for a further postponement on the matter until November 27. This was granted by the court. Matheba, who was flanked by her manager Davin Phillips and stepfather Joe Mokoena, looked relaxed. She took instructions from her lawyer several times before proceedings started, with Coetzee meeting with a representative of the state as he waited for court to begin. Matheba’s manager said the matter had mostly been resolved and the star was working with a “great team” to fix it. “It is settled in some respects but we feel it will be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.
“She has appointed the right team to meet with Sars [South African Revenue Service] to resolve this. Bonang is a lawabiding citizen and this is a matter she takes very seriously.”
He would not be drawn into commenting on the amount owed by Matheba. Coetzee also declined to comment on whether the amount would be settled at her next court appearance. Matheba missed a previous appearance on September 27, with her legal team arguing that she was not able to attend as she was abroad and gave a description of her itinerary.