Popular motivational speaker Vusi Thembekwayo let out a deep sigh and rubbed his hands against his pants to signal relief after he was cleared of assaulting his wife.
After the judgment was read on Friday, Thembekwayo left the dock and sat next to a lady who had accompanied him to court, flashing a big smile at her.
The mysterious lady, who has been attending the court case since it started alongside him, handed him a cup of coffee.
The country’s most sought-after motivational speaker was accused of slapping his wife, Palesa Mahlolo Thembekwayo, several times and dragging her by her feet on the stairway during a violent domestic fight at their posh Joburg home in 2021.
The alleged assault occurred on December 4, 10 days into the annual campaign of 16 Days of Activism Against Women and Child Abuse.
The 39-year-old businessman was acquitted of a common assault charge, which was opened against him at the Douglasdale police station.
Unreliable witness
Magistrate Louis found that the state could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Thembekwayo had assaulted his wife on that night.
The court found that Palesa was an unreliable witness, as she did not remember certain incidents and her statements had discrepancies.
It also found her to be a difficult witness, as she did not take the court into her confidence.
“She was not forthcoming. She did not take the court into her confidence. She alleged that she did not know if the accused dragged her down the stairs,” said Louis.
“She was disputing certain points in the J88. The first injuries were sustained to the right of her body. The injuries were on the left.”
The magistrate added that the court found an issue with Palesa because, after she was assaulted, she went to the police station, passed the hospitals on her way back home to sleep, and only went to seek medical attention the following day.
The court, on the other hand, found Thembekwayo to be a good witness who cooperated.
Speaking to journalists outside court, Thembekwayo said he was happy to finally be acquitted after countless court postponements.
Weaponising gender-based violence
“I feel fine. I feel relieved. It is one thing to be innocent, and it’s another for the court to say you are. It has been three years leading up to this moment, so I am relieved,” he said.
Thembekwayo added that South Africa needs to have a serious conversation about weaponising gender-based violence.
“We clearly have a problem, but we can’t weaponise it, and I think there is a lot of that happening around. That is not to take away from true victims.”
Thembekwayo added that the couple is finalising its divorce, noting that the court case was just the tip of the iceberg in the couple’s relationship.
“There is a point where we must all be held accountable for our actions. There are things that were not ventilated in court, and I would share them with you because she is her own human being, and should be afforded her dignity.
“There were several incidents that happened before that, where things have happened where I had to step in so that it does not become a media issue,” he said.
