Mmusi Maimane Was a Victim of Crime in France, SA Reacts

JOHANNESBURG, GAUTENG—Build One SA (BOSA) President Mmusi Maimane seemingly prefers South African hotels to French hotels after he was allegedly a victim of crime. South Africans empathised with him.

According to TimesLIVE, Maimane posted a WhatsApp status on 3 May 2026 and said that he was robbed in France. In the post, he said that he stayed in many hotels in South Africa and has never had any of his valuables or cash stolen. However, he was cleaned out while staying at a hotel in France. He did not provide any more details about the encounter.

Maimane, whose party recently joined forces with the People’s Prosperity Movement, told TimesLIVE that he did not want to discuss the incident. Yusuf Abramjee posted a screenshot of the WhatsApp status on his @abramjee X account.

View the post on X here:

What did South Africans say?

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Netizens related to Maimane’s experiences with crime.

The Parfum Guy said:

“France is full of petty thieves. I recall the first time I was on their subway, and we were warned about pickpockets. It wasn’t long thereafter that someone’s wallet was taken. My teacher’s camera was stolen one night, and we could only report it the following day because the police station was closed.”

Tsepo Diholo said:

“Always keep your valuables and money in a safe. If your hotel room does not have one, go to reception, and they can arrange a safe for you.”

Caroline Graham said:

“Surely he stayed at a hotel that had a safe in the room? Not like our politicians not to stay in the best hotels money can buy.”

Source: Briefly News