UDM, Holomisa win first round in case against B-BBEE giant

In a David versus Goliath battle in the courts, the United Democratic Movement (UDM) and its leader, Bantu Holomisa, won the first round against a black economic empowerment giant, Lebashe Investment Group, and others, in the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) on Friday.

- Eric Mthobeli Naki

This after the appeal by Lebashe Investment Group, Harith General Partners, Harith Fund Managers and the companies' directors — Gregory Wheatly, Tshepo Mahloele and Jabu Moleketi — was struck from the roll and they were ordered to pay the costs of the appeal application.

The matter is a sequel to an open letter Holomisa, on behalf of the UDM, wrote to President Cyril Ramaphosa on 26 June, 2018, asking him to institute an investigation into allegations of fraud and corruption at the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) against the directors.

Further, on 1 July 2018, Holomisa posted on then Twitter (now known as X) where he accused the directors of being "hyenas".

They argued the plea was impermissible and contents of the PIC report could not be relied upon to determine the meaning of the published material.

The directors then took exception and sued the UDM and Holomisa for defamation, claiming R2 million in damages and injury caused on 15 August 2018.