South Africa: Tender King Cat Matlala Refuses to Leave Jail for Parliament Grilling

11 November 2025
Scrolla (Johannesburg)
By Dylan Bettencourt
  • Matlala, awaiting trial for attempted murder, is a key witness in Parliament's police corruption investigation and is being held at Kgosi Mampuru Prison.
  • MPs may move the hearing to the prison after Matlala said he doesn't trust police to escort him safely to Cape Town.

Vusimusi "Cat" Matlala, a controversial businessman linked to police corruption, says he won't travel to Cape Town to testify in Parliament because he fears for his life.

Matlala is being held at Kgosi Mampuru Prison in Pretoria while awaiting trial for the attempted murder of his ex-girlfriend. He was expected to appear in person before Parliament's ad hoc committee investigating police corruption later this month.

But Matlala has refused to go, saying he doesn't feel safe being escorted by the same police officers he is set to testify against.

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Committee chairperson Soviet Lekganyane said Matlala replied quickly to their letter but raised serious questions. "He was also asking where he's going to sleep in Cape Town," Lekganyane said.

He's not alone. Another potential witness, Brown Mogotsi, also raised fears over security and asked who would pay for his transport.

Parliament's legal team told both men that accommodation and transport could be arranged, but security was not Parliament's responsibility.

Now, MPs are considering moving the hearing to Kgosi Mampuru Prison instead.

ANC MP Khusela Sangoni said the party supported in-person hearings, but if Pretoria was safer, they would back that option.

Officials confirmed the prison has space for 400 people, internet access and holding rooms. The Department of Correctional Services said they could improve the venue if required.

Matlala is a central figure in the corruption investigation. He was flagged by murdered whistleblower Babita Deokaran for suspicious Tembisa Hospital contracts.

His company, Medicare24 Tswane District, won a R360-million police health services tender in June 2024 despite lacking formal qualifications - amid allegations of fraud and fronting.

Read the original article on Scrolla.

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