Behari denies clearing Mkhwanazi amid fraud allegations

The suspended Ekurhuleni head of legal services, Adv Kemi Behari, says he never cleared embattled metro police chief Julius Mkhwanazi on allegations of fraud and corruption. This contradicts evidence presented by former municipal managerImogen Mashazi, who told the commission that the city could not charge Mkhwanazi based on the Independent Police Investigative Directorate’s (Ipid’s) report because their legal department believed the charges were not sustainable. “I have never cleared [Mkhwanazi]; no one ever cleared [Mkhwanazi].

I didn’t give such advice to the city manager [Mashazi],” Behari said yesterday. Behari wrote a letter in December 2023 responding to Ipid’s finding which had declared which recommended that Mkhwanazi be disciplined. The city said the findings were vague and that it would be difficult for them to prove that Mkhwanazi had committed fraud and corruption by entering into an MOU (memorandum of understanding) with the security company of the alleged cartel member Vusi “Cat” Matlala on behalf of the city.

Ipid had found that there was prima facie evidence which amounted to fraud and corruption and recommended that Mkhwanazi face a disciplinary hearing, among other things. Defending the letter yesterday, Behari said the letter was only a draft and was not intended to be sent to Ipid. He said he drafted the letter after MMC for community safety Sizakele Masuku asked him for legal advice on how to respond to Ipid’s findings.

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“The letter was never sent to Ipid. It remained an internal draft and was withheld precisely because the city had not yet received the necessary clarifications from Ipid regarding the confidentiality classification of the report and the prosecutorial status of certain matters. “The allegation that the draft represented an official stance by the city is incorrect.

It acquired a profile only after being leaked — without authorisation — to certain individuals, including Mr [Thembinkosi] Nciza, who then mischaracterised it before the commission,” said Behari. On Monday, Behari told the commission that the city had settled a matter involving then COO Lesiba (Joe) Mojapelo, despite evidence that DJ Sbu, real name Sibusiso Leope, and Nciza, formerANC Gauteng provincial secretary, benefited from R100m in municipal grants. However, DJ Sbu said there is no factual basis to Behari’s allegations. “These allegations, which attempt to implicate myself [and] Nciza, are entirely false, defamatory and without any factual basis,” he said.

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