NPA Doubles Back on Provisional Withdrawal in Gwamanda Fraud Case, Plans To Reinstate Fraud Charges

• The NPA on 25 February 2025 withdrew the state's fraud case against former Johannesburg mayor Kabelo Gwamanda
• Gwamanda and a co-accused, Mduduzi Zondo, were charged with defrauding clients of their funeral insurance scheme
• The former Johannesburg Community Development MMC said he felt vindicated after the state dropped its case

Tshepiso Mametela is a seasoned journalist at Briefly News. A Head of Current Affairs, Mametela reported live from the presidential inauguration of Cyril Ramaphosa and has written articles on politics, crime, courts, accidents and other topics, including sports, at The Herald and Opera News SA, among others.

JOHANNESBURG — One day after provisionally withdrawing charges, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) announced its intention to prosecute former Johannesburg Mayor Kabelo Gwamanda for alleged fraud.

On Tuesday, 25 February 2025, the State temporarily dropped the case against Gwamanda and a second defendant in the matter, Mduduzi Zondo.

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Gwamanda cleared of fraud — for now

The Protea Magistrate's Court heard that the prosecution failed to present the charge sheet. The Al Jama-ah councillor — and Zondo — are alleged to have operated a funeral insurance Ponzi scheme in Soweto, Johannesburg.

During the scam between 2011 and 2012, their company, Ithemba Lama Afrika, had allegedly moved out of Soweto when it came time to pay out claims.

In November 2024, after he handed himself to police on Friday, 18 October, the incumbent mayor, Dada Morero, fired Gwamanda as the Community Development Member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC).

At Tuesday's court hearing, as the State was meant to disclose its evidence to the defence, the prosecutor, Sandra Mntambo, said:

"The State was unable to issue a trial-ready certificate and, therefore, is provisionally withdrawing charges [based] on merit."

The prosecuting authority said in a statement that more complainants had come forward, necessitating further investigations. It planned to prosecute Gwamanda and Zondo once the police concluded their investigations.

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Meanwhile, Gwamanda, who's maintained his innocence, took to his X account to celebrate the vindication, speaking about the case at length.

"The truth will always prevail. If you know you're innocent, it will be proven as such. What kind of a business is taken to court without a charge sheet? And yet he’s famous for being a criminal already," said Gwamanda.

DA welcomes Gwamanda’s sacking

In a related story, Briefly News reported on 10 November that the Democratic Alliance (DA) in Johannesburg welcomed Gwamanda's sacking.

However, the politician maintained his innocence, with his Al Jama-ah backing him. The party accused the DA of persecuting him.

The DA added that it did not close that chapter.

“We can only imagine the damage caused by this individual both during his short stint as mayor and as MMC for Community Development," it said.

"The party called for a full investigation into all agreements and Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) he signed during his stints.

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While the party expressed elation to see Gwamanda's back, it expressed concerns about his replacement after Morero immediately appointed Patriotic Alliance's (PA) councillor Tebogo Nkouko.

Source: Briefly News