By Johnathan Paoli
Suspended Deputy National Police Commissioner Shadrack Sibiya on Monday sought to distance himself from individuals linked to tender corruption and political intrigue, telling Parliament’s ad hoc committee that his interactions with whistleblowers and businesspeople were limited and professional in nature.
Appearing before the inquiry probing alleged corruption and political interference within the criminal justice system, Sibiya faced questions from evidence leader and senior counsel Norman Arendse about his contacts with controversial businessmen Brown Mogotsi and Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala, who have been implicated in several high-profile tender scandals.
Sibiya confirmed that he first came into contact with Mogotsi around December 2024, describing him as “an activist from North West” who claimed to possess sensitive information about “intelligence people working” against him.
“He phoned me out of the blue. I don’t know this guy,” Sibiya told the committee.
Sibiya said Mogotsi had repeatedly called to warn him that elements within Crime Intelligence were allegedly plotting to undermine him.
While he admitted that Mogotsi “peddled information of a political nature”, Sibiya insisted he saw no harm in listening to him, given his own responsibility for crime detection and intelligence oversight.
He recalled meeting Mogotsi in person for the first and only time at a breakfast in Cape Town on 8 January this year, coinciding with the ANC’s 113th anniversary celebrations.
“I was there on official duties. He called, and we arranged to meet for breakfast,” he said.
Asked by Arendse why he would entertain someone he did not know, Sibiya replied: “I don’t have any reason to say no, I can’t see you”.
He said Mogotsi never dropped any political names to secure the meeting and that their engagement was short.
“He didn’t drop names or promise anything. When he left, he forgot to pay and I didn’t agree to pay for him. It’s not like we are friends or close to each other,” Sibiya said.
Arendse then turned to Matlala, a controversial figure previously red-flagged by slain whistleblower Babita Deokaran over irregularities at Tembisa Hospital.
Matlala made headlines in December last year when reports surfaced that he had secured a R360 million health services contract with the police despite those allegations.
Sibiya told MPs that he met Matlala for the first time in February 2024, when he was acting National Commissioner, after Matlala requested a meeting through his attorney.
“I know Mr Matlala as a service provider to the SAPS. He was well known because he ran a hospital at the police college. He came to my office to complain that he had been awarded a tender but was not allowed to use the facility to deliver services,” Sibiya said.
According to Sibiya, Matlala presented a letter from Public Works confirming a lease agreement for the facility, but National Commissioner Fannie Masemola maintained that “Public Works cannot tell SAPS how to use its buildings” and instructed that Matlala not be allowed access.
He confirmed seeing Matlala afterwards at the SAPS college, but emphasised that his interactions with him were “very, very limited”.
When ANC MP Khusela Diko asked about the disputed facility, Sibiya explained that every police college has an on-site clinic, and that Matlala believed he was “being made to fail” because he could not occupy the building.
Matlala’s name has since resurfaced in the investigation into the disbandment of the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT).
Following Matlala’s May arrest, forensic analysis of his seized iPhones reportedly revealed messages referencing the team’s closure.
According to testimony from KwaZulu-Natal Serious and Violent Crimes Unit head William Kunene, this data was passed from a digital forensics officer to Crime Intelligence head Dumisani Khumalo, who then informed Masemola.
Masemola, in turn, engaged KwaZulu-Natal Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, culminating in the explosive 6 July media briefing where Mkhwanazi accused both Sibiya and Police Minister Senzo Mchunu of corruption.
Sibiya is expected to continue his testimony after lunch.
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