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2026
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[2026] ZAGPJHC 222
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Masondo v Mampuele (2026/032265) [2026] ZAGPJHC 222 (4 March 2026)
IN
THE HIGH COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA
GAUTENG
DIVISION, JOHANNESBURG
Case
2026-032265
1.
Reportable: No
2.
Of interest to other judges: No
3.
Revised
WRIGHT
J
In
the matter between:
DAVID
MASONDO
APPLICANT
and
RALEBALA
MATONE
MAMPUELE
RESPONDENT
JUDGMENT
– WRIGHT J
1.
The applicant, Mr Masondo, is the Chairman of the Board of the Public
Investment Corporation and he is the Deputy Minister
of Finance.
2.
The respondent, Mr Mampuele is a businessman who does or did business
with the PIC.
3.
The business relationship between the PIC and Mr Mampuele has soured.
4.
Mr Masondo has five prayers: 1) that the matter is heard, as the
notice of motion puts it, semi-urgently, 2) a declarator
that certain
statements by Mr Mampuele are false and defamatory, 3) not a
retraction but rather an order that Mr Mampuele send
an email to the
relevant recipients in which he admits that he was wrong and that the
statements were made recklessly without verifying
the true facts, 4)
an interdict against Mr Mampuele from publishing defamatory material
about Mr Masondo, 5) Costs on a punitive
scale.
5.
Relief is sought in final form.
6.
On 9 January 2026, Mr Mampuele emailed the Public Protector. This
email is annex FA 17 to the founding affidavit. Using
the word
“allegedly” throughout, Mr Mampuele accuses the Head of
Legal at the PIC of misusing state funds and of taking
bribes. The
Head of Legal is accused of collaborating with Mr Masondo in so
doing.
7.
On the same day, Mr Mampuele forwarded the email to various persons
in banks and business. Annex FA 19.
8.
On 11 January 2026, an article appeared in a widely published
newspaper in which a history of financial wrongdoing at the
PIC is
alleged. Mr Mampuele is referred to as the source of the allegations.
Three senior persons at the PIC, but not Mr Masondo,
are named. Annex
FA 20. This publication makes no statement about Mr Masondo directly
although it makes defamatory statements about
the three senior
persons and the PIC generally. In my view, the reasonable reader
would associate the article with Mr Masondo given
his high political
profile and his being the Chairman of the PIC. The statement appears
that “ The allegations of impropriety
at the PIC are not
improbable, given the fund’s history of being treated as a
feeding trough. It’s poor investment
performance has often been
linked to empowerment deals for the politically connected. “
9.
On 12 January 2026, Mr Mampuele sent an email to various recipients.
FA 22. He referred to the newspaper article as set
out in FA 20 and
stated that “ the PIC is attempting to make hundreds of
Millions from Black Entrepreneurs and benefiting
few top politicians
and executives within the biggest African Pension Fund in Africa.”
In my view, the reasonable reader
would read this as a reference to
Mr Masondo, if not also to others.
10.
On 14 January 2026, an article was
published in an online publication. FA 23. The article refers to Mr
Masondo by name and by office.
A prominent photo of him appears. The
article refers to the Public Protector having received a complaint
that Mr Masondo is improperly
benefitting himself at public expense.
11.
On 19 January 2026 a podcast
episode was published on Youtube. FA 24. The transcript is FA 25. Mr
Mampuele was interviewed. Mr Mampuele
says that the Mr Masondo was “
running a scheme “ and was “ part and parcel of
bankrupting Limpopo Treasury “.
12.
Mr Mampuele denies every component
part of the application. He says that the publications are not
defamatory and that he is entitled
to publish them. He says that Mr
Masondo is a public figure.
13.
He states that the business
relationship between him and the PIC went sour. A person at the PIC
allegedly demanded a bribe from
him.
14.
He says that the matter is widely
covered in the media. He says that reporting corruption and crime is
in the public interest.
15.
In my view, the publications are
prima facie wrongful and defamatory of Mr Masondo in that they lower
Mr Masondo in the eyes of
ordinary, right thinking persons.
16.
The onus is on Mr Mampuele to plead
and prove his principal defence of publication as true and in the
public interest.
17.
These are motion proceedings for
final relief. Such relief can only be granted where the facts stated
by the respondent together
with the admitted facts in the applicant’s
affidavit justify the order. This applies irrespective of where the
onus lies.
See Reddy v Siemens Telecommunications (Pty) Ltd [2006]
SCA 164 at paragraph 4.
18.
I need to separate two things. On
one hand, Mr Mampuele can’t be stopped from reporting alleged
crime to the proper authorities
like the Public Protector and the
SAPS.
19.
On the other hand, it cannot be
held that continued publication to any person other than the above
mentioned authorities is in the
public interest.
20.
The weak point in Mr Mampuele’s
case is that he provides no evidence to prove his allegations. There
are no real disputes
of fact.
21.
Mr Mampuele was asked to desist. He
did not and he repeated his point of view in his answering affidavit.
Punitive costs follow.
22.
Mr Maenetje SC for Mr Masondo
handed up a draft order. I amended it to allow for the change
reflecting that Mr Mampuele can’t
be interdicted from
approaching the Public Protector or the SAPS.
23.
When Mr Allison, for Mr Mampuele
began his address he handed to me a draft order, which he said could
be an interim solution. The
draft provided for an interim interdict
against Mr Mampuele pending the outcome of an action to be instituted
by Mr Masondo. Mr
Maenetje rejected the suggestion, saying that Mr
Masondo had no intention of instituting action. I do not infer
against Mr Mampuele
any inference of liability.
ORDER
X
as amended
WRIGHT
J
HEARD
4 March 2026
DELIVERED
4 March 2026
APPEARANCES
:
APPLICANT
Adv N Maenetje
SC
Adv B Manentsa
Instructed
by
Webber Wentzel
dario.milo@webberwentzel.com
RESPONDENT
Adv AP Allison
Instructed
by
Vardakos Attorneys
vardakos@worlonline.co.za