Senona describes Matlala as ‘a younger brother’, claims Mkhwanazi threatened him

By Johnathan Paoli

KZN Hawks boss Major-General Lesetja Senona has claimed that he saw nothing improper in accompanying murder accused and tenderpreneur Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala to a private meeting with Provincial Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, insisting that his presence was informal and motivated by a sense of personal responsibility rather than official duty.

Resuming his testimony after lunch on Tuesday, Senona rejected suggestions that the meeting itself was irregular, repeatedly stressing that he neither arranged it nor participated in it in any formal capacity.

“I did not see it as a problem with accompanying a younger brother (Matlala) to a meeting that I was not a full participant in,” he maintained.

Addressing concerns raised by the commission about the optics of the meeting, Senona said he had merely accompanied Matlala and denied acting as an intermediary or facilitator.

He further rejected claims that he had told Mkhwanazi that he