The controversy around Sol Plaatje local municipality manager Bartholomew “Thapelo” Matlala has deepened with the council electing to place him on “precautionary suspension” on Tuesday.
According to sources inside the municipality, the council further resolved to compile a full register of all resolutions it has taken during this tenure amid allegations that he ignored key council resolutions.
Sunday World reported two weeks ago that the mayor had given him seven days to give reasons why he shouldn’t be suspended pending a full investigation into allegations of maladministration and irregular payments to suppliers.
But it was the tender worth millions to Mabalane A Seven Construction and Projects that got the local community up in arms and out on the streets in protest.
On June 11, Matlala signed off on the tender offer worth R3 908 473, while Makoma Julia Matlala accepted on behalf of Mabalane. Locals immediately raised questions about their relationship.
They wondered why a company headquartered in Limpopo should get tenders at the local municipality ahead of them for something as mundane as renovating a community hall.
Sunday World can reveal that Sol Plaatje paid Mabalane R1 223 738 on July 7, according to the remittance advice.
Thapelo Matlala doesn’t indicate when he signed it, but the second signatory wrote July 1.
Three days later, a second payment for R1 382 098 was processed “for the refurbishment of Florianville Hall”, according to the remittance advice.
Again, Thapelo Matlala doesn’t give a date when he signed, while two other officials signed on July 10 and July 25.
Leading the accusations against Thapelo Matlala is the Kimberley Action Group (KAG), chaired by Boyce Makaodi, who told Sunday World that these unusual payments gave the group reason to suspect that Thapelo Matlala and Makoma Julia Matlala are related, “hence a favoured contractor”.
“Ask the municipality to show you proof that it has ever paid anyone else that quickly,” said Makaodi.
He said what irked them even further was that Mabalane was registered in Limpopo, not Northern Cape.
“We have made numerous demands for locals to be prioritised for opportunities, but that always falls on deaf ears.
“On July 14, we handed over a memorandum to the premier, demanding that a policy be formulated to ensure that locals are given priority in tenders as well as job opportunities,” said Makaodi.
He said this was why the group had demanded that the municipality suspend Matlala so that all tenders awarded during his tenure could be investigated.
He said the mayor and the premier had promised to establish a steering committee comprising residents and local organisations in the mayor’s office.
“We spent days working out the terms of reference only to be blue-ticked by the municipality when this committee had to be launched,” he said.
“Should residents not come out victorious pertaining to the suspension, residents will go to the streets because it seems nowadays that’s the only language this government understands.”
To this end, KAG said on June 12 it submitted a slew of freedom of information requests to Thapelo Matlala, which it hoped would aid in its investigation.
“To date, the municipal manager has not responded,” said Makaodi. “We will now take the request to the mayor.”
Responding for the municipality, Keobakile Musunse wrote on September 10, under the headline “Response to media inquiry on Mabalane A Seven Construction matter”: “We acknowledge the public interest and media enquiries relating to the allegations of misconduct involving the municipal manager, Mr Thapelo Matlala.
“Following a duly convened council meeting on September 4, 2025, the municipal manager was formally afforded the opportunity to submit written representations within seven days.
“As per the legal framework, the council will consider the written representations within seven days of receipt.”
Curiously, other than the headline, the response has nothing to do with Mabalane and the owner’s relationship to Matlala.
At the time of publishing, Makoma Julia Matlala had yet to comment, while Thapelo Matlala said he won’t comment on any Sunday World story.
