A talented tongue
When it comes to seducing people to get his way or getting himself out of trouble, Castro is a master act.
Aubrey Poo has played some horrible characters in his life – like manipulative abuser Pastor Gabriel on the former Isidingo and shady, shifty Fenyang on nowcancelled telenovela Isibaya. But corrupt, greedy politician businessman Castro Kamanga is at the top of the naughty list, says the actor. “He is the epitome of evil. He’s one of those characters that don’t come along all that often, so when they do, you grab it! I’ve had some very nice characters in my career, and some not-so-nice ones. Castro is one of the worst and that makes him one of my best.” And this fortnight will test Castro as he’s got good news… and bad news.
MAN UNDER FIRE
Castro is currently one of the prime suspects in detective Jo’s (Lorcia Cooper-Khumalo) investigation into an accident involving powerful government bigwig Minister Nozulu (Siyabonga Shibe). “Jo knows when something is amiss. She is no fool and this car accident with the minister smells,” explains Lorcia. “Jo has already interviewed people who’ve given her clues and enough information to know that things are not what they seem. The minister told her that he didn’t drink and that his beverage was spiked. So that means someone wants him out of the way… and since Castro has close ties to the minister, it has to be him.”
Anticipating something coming up, Castro tries to build a protective shield around him, explains Aubrey. “Remember that Castro has people on his payroll who he can turn to and they’ll take care of things. This won’t be the first nor the last investigation – and he always comes out smiling.
TRAPPED LIKE A RAT?
But there’s another problem that Castro hasn’t taken into account: The public and the people he’s worked with… and walked over. “Castro doesn’t let people control him. He does the controlling and he’s the one who stands on top shining while others are getting in trouble for doing his dirty work,” says Aubrey. “When it comes to Castro, he has control over everything but nothing can be tied to him. He’s always come away scot-free and without so much as a grain of dirt on his shoes.” That’s going to change when a group of furious colleagues confront him. “It’s not that he can’t fix this, he just thinks that he’s better than them and who are they to question him? He’ll crush them and make them pay!” says Aubrey.