Former mayor feeling ‘blessed’ amid legal drama unfolding

Former Tshwane executive mayor Murunwa Makwarela has accused the ANC and his former political home, Congress of the People (Cope), of setting him up for failure in endorsing him to become a councillor and later mayor of the capital city.

In a tweet, purported to be from Makwarela, read in the Specialised Commercial Crime Court yesterday as part of the investigating officers’ evidence, he accused former ANC Tshwane regional chair Kgosi Maepa, Cope spokesperson Dennis Bloem and ANC Gauteng spokesperson Lesego Makhubela of giving him bad advice.

‘Christianity’

“As a Christian and a pastor in my church, I apologise for misrepresenting myself to the City of Tshwane and offer to refund the city all the monies paid to me from the first day as a councillor,” read the tweet.

“I was ill advised by Dr Kgosi Maepa and Lesego Makhubela as they want the ANC to win all the metros at all cost in Gauteng as announced by premier Panyaza Lesufi and Dennis Bloem.”

Makwarela was granted bail of R10 000 by the Specialised Commercial Crime Court in Pretoria yesterday after he handed himself over to the Brooklyn Police Station yesterday.

READ MORE: Ex-Tshwane mayor Murunwa Makwarela granted R10k bail

Charges

He faces two counts of fraud and one of uttering related to allegations that he submitted a forged insolvency clearance certificate in March in his bid to stay on as mayor.

Asked how he felt about making his first appearance in court, Makwarela said: “I am feeling blessed and highly favoured.”

He refused to answer the question of where he got the rehabilitation insolvency certificate. Speaking to The Citizen, both the ANC in Gauteng and Cope poured cold water on the allegations contained in the tweet. Former Tshwane chair and now advisor to Lesufi’s office, Maepa said: “I’ve never advised Makwarela because I’m from the ANC.

He himself told me after he saw the tweet that it was not him and it was not his account, it was a parody account.”

‘No advise given’

Meanwhile Makhubela denied knowing Makwarela. “I have nothing to do with advising him. I am sure he doesn’t know me except for seeing me on TV or hearing me on the radio or something. I don’t know him. I think the guy is suffering from something,” he said.

Makhubela said the ANC had supported Makwarela because “when he was presented to us by the regional leadership, he was considered to be the most qualified … at least that we can say we checked with Wits University and that is why [we were] allowed to support him,” he said.

“Our interest is to stabilise the municipality and ensure our people are provided with services.” Bloem also denied he had convinced Makwarela to jump from the Democratic Alliance-led coalition to the ANC-Economic Freedom Fighters-led coalition.

“I had absolutely nothing to do with convincing him. I was the main negotiator representative [from Cope] on the multiparty coalition so there’s no way I can go and encourage him to do something else,” Bloem said.

“Political parties must respect protocol and not negotiate with individual members.” He said if he was to be called to testify in the Makwarela case, he would not hesitate.

ALSO READ: ‘I’m still the Tshwane mayor’, insists Murunwa Makwarela