Joburg Mayor Kabelo Gwamanda no-show at press briefing

Newly-appointed Joburg Mayor Kabelo Gwamanda failed to attend a media briefing intended to set the record straight about the fraud allegations surrounding him

In a clip by Kaya FM, Al Jama-Ah party representative Imraan Moosa explained that Gwamanda’s personal security guards were unavailable.

“Somebody just informed me that his protectors are unavailable this [Saturday] morning, and there are some security risks,” said Moosa.

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Gwamanda accused of running a scam

The Al Jama-Ah councillor was elected the new executive mayor of the City of Johannesburg on 5 May 2023, beating ActionSA’s Funzi Ngobeni and Democratic Alliance (DA) Joburg leader Mpho Phalatse by 139 to 59 and 68 votes, respectively.

But barely 24 hours later, Phalatse accused Gwamanda of running a defunct funeral scheme. 

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In an internal memorandum seen by The Citizen, and addressed to council speaker Colleen Makubela, Al-Jama-Ah council leader Thapelo Amad described the “attack” on Gwamanda as a “misrepresentation of his business affairs.”

Amad has requested the council’s Ethics Committee to investigate Phalatse’s claims and to establish if the allegations “violated his (Gwamanda’s) rights and brought the Office he holds into serious disrepute.”

He’s also asked that Makubela ensure Gwamanda’s rights are protected.

Last Thursday, eNCA reported some complainants had filed fraud charges against Gwamanda in relation to his investment company, iThemba Lama Afrika.  

They claim Gwamanda had tricked them into investing with the promise of big returns.

One of the victims spoke to the news station, saying she lost R6000 to the investment scheme and that Gwamanda had approached her personally.

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WATCH: Victims speak out

But, Al Jama-ah appears to be sticking by their man and chalked up the newest scandal to “petty politics.”