Says Kenneth Makate accepted millions of rand in financial support but is now trying to disclaim his obligations now that his settlement with Vodacom is concluded.
Please Call Me inventor Kenneth Makate heads to court next week to defend a claim by litigation funder Black Rock Mining that a freeze should be placed on 40% of his reported R700-million payout from Vodacom after nearly two decades of legal wrangling.
The Joburg High Court is being asked to prevent Makate from distributing 40% of his Vodacom payout pending the outcome of arbitration hearings that will establish whether Black Rock is entitled to that portion.
Makate has filed a supplementary affidavit in response to an urgent application brought by Black Rock earlier this month before the high court.
In it, Makate argues that any claim Black Rock may have has prescribed (run out of time), since the funder should have launched proceedings within three years of Vodacom’s initial offer of R47 million for the Please Call Me invention back in 2019.
The Prescription Act prevents anyone from enforcing a debt or claim after a specified period, usually three years, unless the debt is acknowledged or judicial action is initiated.
Makate adds that the funding agreement with Black Rock was cancelled, and that fraud occurred when his signature was forged to redirect the deal from Black Rock to a new entity called Raining Men Trade.
He also claims Black Rock has waived its rights to any entitlement from the Vodacom settlement.
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Black Rock Mining’s entitlement
In his replying affidavit, Errol Elsdon, a former director of Black Rock Mining, says the company is entitled under a funding agreement to “40% whatever is made and recovered” from Vodacom, and that the settlement was only concluded in early November 2025.
Makate has attempted to backdate the prescription clock to 2019 when Vodacom CEO Shameel Joosub made an offer of R47 million for ‘Please Call Me’ invention.
That was immediately rejected by Makate and went under legal review. No award or settlement was received.
It was only in November 2025, when Makate’s compensation was finally determined and became due and payable, that the three-year prescription clock began ticking, says Elsdon.
Black Rock was deregistered in the British Virgin Islands in 2014 and then re-registered in 2020. Makate cannot invoke prescription against an entity that was legally incapable of acting, argues Elsdon.
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Makate also repudiates Black Rock’s claim to 40% of his winnings on the grounds that the agreement to fund his litigation against Vodacom was cancelled in January 2015.
One of these letters was addressed to the late Christiaan Schoeman and Raining Men Trade, but Elsdon maintains that this does not impact Black Rock’s rights.
The matter went to arbitration in 2020, and it was found that the nomination of Raining Men Trade by Schoeman as the funding entity was fraudulent, leaving Black Rock as the only valid nominee.
Elsdon says Makate continued to accept the benefit of legal funding via Pretoria attorneys Stemela & Lubbe, who were appointed under the funding agreement.
Elsdon provides as an annexure a November 2015 email confirming receipt of R2.46 million. Makate’s then lawyers claimed that the funding agreement with Black Rock Mining had been cancelled for non-performance, without specifying what performance was required.
Makate’s team accepted funding of around R4.5 million, some of it in cash, something that will be established through arbitration, says Elsdon.
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Makate claims that Raining Men Trade and Black Rock are shell companies with no real assets, and they misrepresented their capacity to fund the litigation, meaning the entire arrangement was a sham.
He has also accused Elsdon, Schoeman and Tracy Roscher – all of whom were involved in the early funding agreements – of dishonesty and fraud.
Elsdon has vehemently denied these accusations in his court papers, adding that the matter was previously decided by arbitration and Makate cannot now relitigate matters already settled.
“These are serious allegations, but they are improperly raised, inadequately pleaded, and ultimately irrelevant to the interim relief sought,” deposes Elsdon.
“Firstly, fraud is not a defence that can be raised casually in opposing papers without proper pleading and evidence. Fraud must be specifically pleaded with full particularity. The allegations are vague, contradictory, and unsupported by cogent evidence,” Elsdon argues.
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Court battle focuses on funding agreement
In his opposing affidavit, Makate agrees he signed a document nominating Black Rock as the funding entity, but never received a copy – “the excuse always was that it got lost”.
Elsdon says Makate entered into the agreement with full knowledge of its terms and after taking legal advice.
“He accepted the benefits for years. He relied upon the agreement in arbitration proceedings. He never instituted proceedings to set aside the agreement on grounds of fraud.”
Elsdon also disputes Makate’s claim that Black Rock had waived its rights under the funding agreement when Raining Men Trade entered the picture.
A party can only waive its rights with full knowledge of those rights, and a clear intention expressed or implied through conduct that the rights have been waived. During the 2020 arbitration proceedings, Makate confirmed that Black Rock was nominated as his litigation funding partner, adds Elsdon.
Makate argues that Black Rock’s application before the court is a disguised anti-dissipation order to which it was not entitled.
Elsdon responds that Black Rock does not seek to attach or freeze Makate’s general assets, but only to prevent payment of the 40% to which it believes it is contractually entitled.
This article was republished from Moneyweb. Read the original here.
