Pretoria – South African businessman, Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala, delivered an unexpected testimony before Parliament’s Ad Hoc Committee as he responded to questions about his background, identity, and alleged cross-border ties, mentioning that he got a personal invitation to attend King Mswati III’s birthday celebrations in April.
Matlala told the committee when asked by the EFF leader Julius Malema that he last visited Eswatini on 19 April 2025 and returned to South Africa the following day. He explained that the trip was not secretive but was made to attend His Majesty the King’s Birthday celebration at Mbangweni Royal Residence, following an invitation from Her Majesty The Indlovukazi.
Malema asked him if he had roots in Eswatini but Matlala said he does not. He also said he was not a Dlamini as it is claimed, at least by the Eswatini prosecution. Matlala said Dlamini is her martenal grandmother’s surname and she has roots in the KwaZulu Natal province.
Malema also questioned him how he got invited to the king’s birthday, he also asked him whether he personally knew the king for him to get invited to the birthday. Matlala replied that he did not know the king personally, but he did know the Queen Mother, who had invited him to the event.
Malema also pressed him on allegations that he holds Eswatini citizenship. Matlala rejected the claims, stating that he has never possessed an Eswatini passport or identity document.
The session shifted to a more personal tone when Malema asked Matlala about his roots. Matlala said he was born in Mamelodi and grew up without parental support after his mother disappeared shortly after his birth. He only located her in 2002, but she was already terminally ill.
He went on to share a deeply painful part of his family history, revealing that his mother had been raped because his father believed a harmful myth — that raping a person living with albinism could cure illness. Matlala told the Committee that this trauma had shaped much of his life.
Discussion about this post