The Johannesburg High Court has granted an order in favour of controversial content creator Matthew Bongani Lani in relation to his ongoing defamation lawsuit against the Gauteng education department, wherein he is demanding R2.5-million in damages.
The order, delivered on September 2 by Judge Shaida Mahomed, paves the way for Lani’s civil lawsuit case against the department to go to trial and be heard on its full merits.
The order also grants Lani permission to proceed with his lawsuit against the department.
“Having read the documents filed for record, and noting that the application is unopposed, and that the applicant [Lani] has provided a satisfactory explanation for the delay, it is hereby ordered that the applicant’s non-compliance with Section 2 of the State Liability Act 20 of 1957 is hereby condoned.
“The applicant’s action under case number 2025/091797 is declared proper before this court,” states Mahomed’s order.
Defamation lawsuit
Lani has launched a defamation lawsuit against the department and is demanding R2.5-million in damages.
The lawsuit stems from a media statement issued by the department on October 11, 2023, that labelled Lani a “bogus doctor” who had “masqueraded” as a medical professional without a matric certificate.
In his court papers, Lani claims the department’s public statement was false. He also claims it was defamatory and reckless, causing serious damage to his dignity, reputation, and professional standing.
“The defamatory media statement published by the defendant [department] was viewed approximately 1.4-million times on the social media platform X [formerly Twitter].
“It was further republished by major news outlets, both locally and internationally, significantly increasing the visibility of the false claims.
“As a result of this widespread dissemination, the plaintiff [Lani] was subjected to public ridicule, online harassment, and the loss of professional opportunities.
“The scale and speed of the exposure intensified the harm to the plaintiff’s reputation and psychological well-being,” read the court papers.
He said the department’s media statement that it had no record of Lani holding a National Senior Certificate and that he had been “masquerading on social media as a medical practitioner” was false.
Statement misleading
Lani argues that at the time of publication (October 11, 2023), he had not been arrested, charged, or convicted of any offence.
In his arguments, Lani accuses the department of effectively declaring him guilty in the public eye despite no legal process having concluded.
He said the use of terms like “masquerading” amounted to an “inflammatory and misleading” statement made without legal authority.
In November 2024, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) decided not to prosecute Lani over allegations that he was impersonating a medical doctor.
NPA regional spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane said at the time that the decision was made due to insufficient evidence and the matter was closed.
Lani made headlines in October 2023 when he allegedly impersonated a medical doctor and recorded a series of videos on TikTok.
The videos showed him curating content in the hospital corridors.
Security personnel at the Helen Joseph Hospital in Auckland Park, Johannesburg, caught him the same month and arrested him.
Insufficient evidence
He later appeared at the Johannesburg Magistrate’s Court, and the NPA decided not to enrol the case because it said it did not have evidence to sustain the charge.
Moreover, the NPA said there was no evidence to link Lani to the alleged offence of impersonating a medical doctor. The NPA did not register the matter in court.
The NPA then instructed the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) to conduct further investigations.
Once done with the investigations, the Hawks sent the docket back to the NPA so that it could decide whether criminal proceedings should be instituted against Lani.
Due to insufficient evidence, the NPA decided to close the case.
Meanwhile, in March 2024, the South African Human Rights Commission also closed its investigation after probing allegations that Lani was denied his HIV/Aids medication by the Gauteng health department.
