General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi Withdraws Bheki Cele–Vusimuzi Matlala Money Allegation and Apologises

• Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi has withdrawn a previous allegation he made against Bheki Cele
• The KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner discussed ties between Vusimuzi "Cat" Matlala and Cele
• Cele is the fifth witness to testify before Parliament's Ad Hoc Committee probing Mkhwanazi's allegations

Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent 10 years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism.

WESTERN CAPE – Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi has officially withdrawn previous allegations he made against Bheki Cele, apologising for any inconvenience and hurt it may have caused.

The KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner previously alleged that former Minister of Police, Cele, received money from Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala. He claimed that Cele provided the businessman with a bank account number to deposit the money into.

During Cele’s testimony before Parliament’s Ad Hoc Committee on 23 October 2025, proceedings were briefly adjourned after Advocate Norman Arendse indicated that the legal team had received a text message.

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Ad Hoc Committee wants Mkhwanazi to return to explain false allegations

When matters resumed, Arendse explained that the message was from General Mkhwanazi, who wanted to withdraw the allegations. KZN’s top cop explained that after further investigations, the team working on the analysis got the bank account details wrong, and it was not a reference to Cele as previously claimed.

Parliamentarians were in agreement that General Mkhwanazi needed to write or appear before the committee to explain his mistake. Chairperson, Molapi Soviet Lekganyane, also said that the KZN Police Commissioner needed to make a public apology.

Source: Briefly News