- Tshifhiwa Matodzi, ex-chair of VBS Mutual Bank, alleges that former Treasury official Dondo Mogajane received a R1 million bribe to stop municipalities from pulling investments from the bank.
- The bribery allegedly took place in August 2017 amidst National Treasury’s warning to municipalities about prohibited investments in mutual banks.
- Matodzi claims the meetings leading to the bribe involved multiple parties, including a businessman, a person named Chuma, and Dr. Mkhize, in various high-profile locations.
Tshifhiwa Matodzi, the former chairperson of VBS Mutual Bank, has made serious bribery allegations in an affidavit connected to his guilty plea agreement. In the document, Matodzi claims that Dondo Mogajane, who served as the director-general of the National Treasury, was bribed with R1 million to prevent municipalities from withdrawing their investments from VBS Bank.
Matodzi asserts that this alleged bribery took place in August 2017, after municipalities, upon being informed by the National Treasury that investments in mutual banks were illegal under the Municipal Finance Management Act, sought to pull their funds from VBS. To counteract this, Matodzi claims he arranged several meetings with Mogajane to influence his stance, facilitated by Raliom Razwinane, the owner of Gundos Wealth Solutions.
The meetings reportedly took place in various locations, including Cedar Square in Fourways, the VBS offices in Rivonia, Eagle Canyon, and even at Treasury and South African Reserve Bank premises. Matodzi further claims that the meetings were attended by additional individuals, including someone named Chuma and a Dr. Mkhize, with discussions centered around maintaining the municipalities’ investments in the bank.
These allegations have added another layer of controversy to the VBS scandal, which has already led to significant scrutiny over the bank’s financial mismanagement and its role in defrauding depositors and municipalities. The claims, if proven, could lead to serious legal consequences for all involved, further tarnishing the reputations of key figures within both VBS Bank and the National Treasury.
