Life of R5m bribe middleman ‘is in danger’
Thuja CEO Mdwaba, sued for defamation by finance minister, says he cannot give a name
● Controversial businessman Mthunzi Mdwaba, taken to court over his bribery accusations against three cabinet ministers and ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula, is stalling on the identity of the middleman who allegedly solicited a 10% cut on behalf of the four leaders so Mdwaba could pursue an ambitious R5bn “job-creation” scheme.
One of the ministers, Enoch Godongwana, brought an urgent application in the Johannesburg high court this week seeking damages of R1m and an order declaring Mdwaba’s allegations to be defamatory and false. The finance minister also asked the court to order that Mdwaba retract the allegations and to bar their further publication.
Mdwaba, who has pledged in numerous media interviews and on his X (Twitter) account to provide further details of the bribery claims, declined to give the identity of the purported intermediary in court.
“I was approached by a businessman who has since become a very close friend (herein referred to as ‘T’) offering to also assist through senior people he knows in both the ANC and the highest levels of government during the latter part of March 2023,” Mdwaba said in an affidavit.
“I cannot mention his name at this stage as I fear for his life and need him as a key witness to this case and numerous cases linked to this one.
“In the event this honourable court insists, then I will disclose accordingly once we are all in court. I will divulge his name and those of other key witnesses. He, inter alia, made an offer to introduce me to a very high-ranking officer in the state security/ intelligence services after ascertaining if he could be of assistance.”
The Sunday Times understands that Mdwaba did not make the identity of the businessman known in court when the matter was heard on Wednesday. Mdwaba also did not present evidence or affidavits from T or any other witness.
However, he did argue that Godongwana had failed to make the case that the matter should be heard on an urgent basis. Judge Dario Dosio dismissed this argument and reserved judgment on the minister’s application.
Mdwaba, CEO of Thuja Capital, made his bribery allegations in several media interviews. He said a Thuja job-creation scheme that would have cost the Unemployment Insurance Fund R5bn ran into a brick wall because Godongwana, labour & employment minister Thulas Nxesi, higher education minister Blade Nzimande and Mbalula wanted R500m in “gateway fees” from him.
Nxesi blocked implementation of the project in January last year after the Sunday Times reported on the agreement, which has been described as a “get-rich-quick scheme” by labour and other commentators.
Mdwaba has previously denied any wrongdoing, saying: “We as a country have failed in creating jobs, and what we need is innovative, disruptive and creative models to change things and ensure impact.”
In his court papers Mdwaba repeated what he has said in the media, to the effect that the “high-ranking intelligence officer”, who he referred to as “J”, invited him to a meeting at a restaurant in Sandton in May last year to meet Godongwana. At the meeting he was introduced to three men, including “T”, who told him he was “persona non grata” within the ANC because he was considered to be aligned to former president Jacob Zuma.
“They then moved on to the Thuja contract and advised that it was important for me to understand that the ANC had no money and required money for the elections. They also mentioned that their principals were in all likelihood not returning after the 2024 elections and needed funds,” he said.
Mdwaba has previously given this version of events in an interview with Metro FM.
“My participation in the [media] interviews was not mala fide [in bad faith] and I had no intention during the interviews to defame anyone and I believe I have not done so ... I have reasonable belief that the information shared with me on or about May 19 2023 and subsequent meetings, was true and correct and that those two individuals represented the applicant as well,” he said.
All the ministers denied the accusations and sent legal letters to Mdwaba demanding that he retract his statements, while Mbalula and Ndzimande opened a criminal case against him.
Godongwana, who was not in court this week as he was attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, said Mdwaba’s allegations had received wide coverage in news outlets and social media.
“It is trite that without integrity, my colleagues and the public, whom I serve, will always perceive me as corrupt, untrustworthy and suspicious. The allegations undermine the work that I have done and the public confidence which is an important element in public service,” he said in his founding affidavit.
He said attempts to reach an amicable solution with Mdwaba, through letters between their legal representatives, yielded no results. “Mdwaba has never engaged with facts. He has never explained who the intermediary is,” he added.
The Sunday Times has learnt that in the interaction between lawyers for Mdwaba and the minister, Mdwaba was willing to admit that he had “no direct evidence” to substantiate his claims but still refused to retract them.