Former mayor and senior officials appear in court

KNYSNA NEWS - Former Knysna mayor Thando Matika, acting municipal manager Boy Manqoba Ngubo, and acting CFO Busisiwe Lubelwana appeared in the Knysna Magistrate’s Court on Monday 5 October, following their arrests on Thursday 1 October.

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) confirmed that all three face charges of corruption, money laundering and extortion, while an additional corruption charge has been added to Matika’s charge sheet.

The NPA’s spokesperson, Eric Ntabazalila, confirmed the charges during a media briefing outside court after the matter was adjourned. The case was postponed to Monday 12 October for a formal bail application. All three remain in custody.

Arrests and detention
The circumstances surrounding the arrests were addressed in court. Ngubo was reportedly detained in George following his arrest. His attorney, Carl Jeppe, requested that the court grant an order for Ngubo to be kept in custody in Knysna, together with Matika.

Matika had been sought by members of the Priority Crime Investigation Team (PKTT) and was taken into custody before being brought to the Knysna Municipal Council Chambers.

It was heard in court that Matika had been brought to the municipal chambers, where all three accused were arrested on site outside the building.

Although female offenders are detained in Oudtshoorn, the court heard that Lubelwana was detained at the Plettenberg Bay holding cells following her arrest, and is to continue her incarceration here due to accessibility considerations.

Ngubo’s appointment previously challenged
Ngubo’s arrest follows previous scrutiny of his appointment as acting municipal manager and a legal battle involving the Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, Anton Bredell.

Ngubo was appointed acting municipal manager in May for three months following his tenure at Bitou Municipality.

His subsequent extension was challenged in the high court. Ngubo’s application was struck from the roll with costs, while Bredell’s counter-application sought to have the extension of Ngubo’s employment declared unlawful and invalid.

Although the extension was deemed unlawful, Ngubo remained in the acting position. Bredell’s spokesperson, Wouter Kriel, previously said the MEC had raised concerns with the Council regarding disciplinary proceedings contemplated against Ngubo during his previous tenure at Bitou, as well as about a Hawks investigation involving him.

Kriel said Bredell had urged the Council to consider the allegations and findings before extending Ngubo’s appointment.

He said an investigation report by Bradley Conradie Halton Cheadle Attorneys and an internal Bitou Municipality memorandum contained serious findings and/or allegations concerning Ngubo.

Bredell’s counter-application also sought to have decisions taken by Ngubo as acting municipal manager from 28 August declared unlawful and to prevent him from making further decisions in that capacity.

Lubelwana appointment questioned
Lubelwana’s appointment as acting CFO had also previously attracted scrutiny. She was appointed for three months from 13 July following the retirement of former CFO Clifford Julies.

Concerns raised publicly included allegations relating to her previous employment at other municipalities and government entities.

The municipality maintained that her appointment complied with the applicable legislative framework, and that there were no verified findings of misconduct, disciplinary sanctions or criminal convictions disqualifying her from the position.

Bredell nevertheless questioned the municipality’s due diligence process after learning that Lubelwana had been dismissed as CFO of Emalahleni Local Municipality on 23 March 2026.

The MEC requested information about the appointment, including vetting, reference checks and whether the municipality had contacted her previous employer.

According to Kriel, the municipality acknowledged it had been unaware of the dismissal when the Council approved her appointment, and indicated that its due diligence had been based on the information contained in her CV.

The department subsequently confirmed that Lubelwana had challenged her dismissal through the South African Local Government Bargaining Council. Bredell said no intervention would be instituted at that stage, while his department monitored the labour dispute.

Matika’s political status changes
Matika’s arrest comes days after he disputed his removal as mayor and councillor. At the 30 September council meeting, Matika maintained that he had remained a duly elected councillor and executive mayor, and he rejected Speaker Mark Willemse’s instruction to leave the chamber.

On Monday 5 October, the municipality announced that it had received formal notification from the ANC confirming the termination of Matika’s ANC membership.

The municipality said he was therefore no longer a councillor or mayor, and that the tenure of the mayoral committee he had appointed - Kay Andrews, Neil Louw, Pindile Petros and Russel Arends - had also ended.