Embattled Ekurhuleni metro police deputy chiefJulius Mkhwanazihas cast doubt on the authenticity of an email in which he purportedly accounted for his use of Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala’s VIP protectors during the 2022 state of the city address. Previously, Ekurhuleni metropolitan police department (EMPD) chief Jabulani Mapiyeye had revealed at the Madlanga commission that in March 2022, his subordinate, Mkhwanazi, deployed eight protectors from Matlala’s VIP protection security company. WATCH | Suspended EMPD boss Julius Mkhwanazi says he is suprised by the evidence that has been presented so far and declines to take an interview after his evidence at the commission.Video and Image:@Moloi_Herman1pic.twitter.com/uagFVDwpRE Mapiyeye said he initially assumed the sharply dressed men, introduced to him as members of a “task team”, were part of delegations arriving from other parts of the country.
When he later learnt that the men were actually guarding his principals, which included the mayor, Tania Campbell, he confronted Mkhwanazi for an explanation. The email in which Mkhwanazi appeared to account for the deployment – along with the justification for using Matlala’s personnel – was submitted as evidence before the commission. It was submitted as correspondence which was meant to support the claim that only Mkhwanazi had entered into an unlawful agreement with Matlala on behalf of the city.
However, Mkhwanazi challenged the legitimacy of the email, insisting that its writing style does not resemble his own. “I will request, through you, chair [Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga], that we track all the emails I sent on that day, and you will see the format.” This email is too different from my English… I am disputing it.
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“This email is too different from Julius Doctor Mkhwanazi. The English here – I know my English, and not this one. I am a person who can write one paragraph and include everything.
[Now] I am being questioned on it, but I am disputing it,” he said. The commission’s evidence leader, Adv Sello Mahlape, together with Mkhwanazi, is expected to submit a chain of emails from that day to help establish whether the disputed email is genuine.
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