Former police minister Bheki Cele made repeated attempts to contact controversial businessman Vusimusi “Cat” Matlala just days before Matlala’s R360-million police contract collapsed and he was arrested.
Bheki Cele’s Flurry of Calls Before Contract Collapse
According to News24, Cele phoned Matlala 10 times on 9 May, but his calls were either ignored or rejected. At the time, Matlala was threatening legal action against the police if they cancelled his health and risk services contract with the South African Police Service (SAPS).
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Soon after, the lucrative contract was terminated, and Matlala was arrested in connection with the 2023 attempted murder of his ex-partner, actress Tebogo Thobejane.
Records show that Cele and Matlala had exchanged over 100 calls and messages. This contradicts Cele’s insistence that he was not friends or business partners with Matlala.
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“I know him, but friends, no,” Cele told reporters when pressed. He admitted attempting to meet with Matlala but dismissed suggestions of a close relationship, snapping: “You are not a commission,” before ending the interview.
Links to Luxury Apartment
The same investigation revealed that Cele twice stayed in Matlala’s luxury penthouse at The Capital Menlyn Maine in Pretoria. Matlala reportedly arranged access, telling the hotel that Cele was his “friend and business partner.”
Cele admitted to using the apartment but denied any business links with Matlala.
Matlala’s company, Medicare24 Tshwane District, secured the SAPS contract in 2022. Despite being a small Boksburg-based firm, it beat established insurance companies to win the R360-million deal — just a week after Cele left office.
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The contract was later cancelled on grounds of fraud, fronting, and poor performance.
At the time, investigators from the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) and the Hawks were already probing Matlala over suspicious payments at Tembisa Hospital, flagged by whistleblower Babita Deokaran before her murder.
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