Knysna arrests: SACP calls for due process amid corruption allegations - IOL
Ex-Knysna mayor Thando Matika was arrested along with two others.
Former Knysna mayor Thando Matika along with municipal manager Boy Manqoba Ngubo and acting chief financial officer Busisiwe Lubelwana are expected to appear in court today over allegations of corruption and kickbacks linked to a security services contract.
This comes as the SA Communist Party (SACP) in the Western Cape warned against internal “palace politics” following the arrest of Matika last week.
Matika is an SACP mayoral candidate, the only mayoral candidate announced by the party ahead of the November 4 local government elections.
He was ousted by the ANC as Knysna mayor on September 18 after his name appeared on the Electoral Commission’s candidate lists to contest elections under the SACP banner.
Matika has charged that he remained a councillor and a duly elected mayor of Knysna, claiming that the ANC and the municipality had not followed proper processes in his removal. He attended a special council meeting on Wednesday, in which his status as councillor and mayor was contested.
Matika was unveiled as the party’s mayoral candidate by SACP general-secretary Solly Mapaila just four days before his arrest on Thursday.
While SACP provincial secretary Benson Ngqentsu said the party remained “firmly committed” to the fight against corruption, accountability and transparency, it hoped that the arrest was not politically motivated.
“We hope that the relevant law-enforcement and judicial processes will be allowed to unfold without interference, and that due process will establish all the facts and circumstances, regardless of the political affiliation of those facing any allegations.
“In this regard, it does not matter whether one is a member of the SACP and the ANC or an election candidate of either both or another party,” he said.
“We also hope that the latest developments in Knysna, including the arrests announced on Thursday... are not driven by palace politics, political manoeuvring, backstabbing or attempts to tarnish the image and reputation of anyone affected,” added Ngqentsu.
SACP sources in the province have claimed that the party was making gains in wards which were previously supportive of the ANC in the southern Cape region, especially in Knysna.
Reacting to Matika’s arrest, Western Cape ANC spokesperson Sifiso Mtsweni said they will allow due process and the work of law-enforcement agencies in investigating allegations involving any officials.
“The ANC remains committed to accountable, ethical and transparent local government in the interests of the people of Knysna,” he said.
The DA, which is the main opposition in the council, welcomed the arrests.
The party’s mayoral candidate for the municipality, Levael Davis said they had consistently sought greater scrutiny and accountability to stop corruption and maladministration, whether by blocking illegal cadre deployments or tough probing that exposed wrongdoing.
“After three years of DA investigations, there is now proof that our fight within the council was about the people of Knysna, and not politics,” said Davis. He said the arrests were an important development in a matter that ultimately concerns the money of Knysna residents.
“Residents have endured coalition chaos, instability and a devastating decline in basic services, while the municipality has faced repeated governance and financial crises. Every diverted rand could have fixed water infrastructure, sewerage, roads, refuse removal, the Estuary crisis and create job opportunities,” he said.
Davis said a proposal by the Western Cape government to invoke Section 139 of the Constitution and put the municipality under administration was rejected, “and the proof now confirms it was justified”.
Knysna has been governed through an ANC-led coalition since August 2022, when it successfully removed a DA-led coalition. Matika was only elected mayor in February 2025.
