WATCH | Gareth Mnisi’s unexplained life of bling

Gareth Mnisi, the man who is alleged to have manipulated tenders in the City of Tshwane, lived a life of luxury, amassing wealth that a court has found he has been dishonest about.

On Thursday, the suspended CFO of Tshwane made a brief appearance at the Madlanga commission to reschedule his appearance.

WhatsApp messages extracted from Sgt Fannie Nkosi’s phone show that Mnisi and metro police deputy commissioner Umashi Dhlamini responsible for tender procurement had their own preferred companies they wanted to be awarded a tender.

Mnisi is expected to take the hot seat next week Friday.

It has now emerged that in 2024 Mnisi was dragged to the high court in Johannesburg in a civil matter in which it emerged he enjoyed a lifestyle that went beyond that of the “ordinary” person.

Mnisi, who joined Tshwane in 2023, was previously at the Rand West City local municipality in Gauteng.

Documents showed he earned a net salary of R124,000 but had managed to amass wealth and an empire whose sources he could not explain to the court. Mnisi’s failure of disclosure left judge Sarita Liebenberg frustrated, saying the official was using a “catch-me-if-you- can” strategy.

According to court papers, Mnisi often travelled first class on his trips abroad. He also had expensive tastes in watches, owning at least three Tag Hauer watches, the most recent of which he bought in December 2023 for R34,000.

He also came across as a snappy dresser, wearing only expensive brands. The documents also revealed that he drove several vehicles, which include supercars and other expensive vehicles such as a Porsche Targ – a 2023 model Porsche 911 Turbo (worth about R6m), which he apparently used as a “leisure” vehicle.

Mnisi apparently also owned a 2023 BMW X6 M50D, which he used as a “work” vehicle.

He and the applicant in the matter had no less than two Range Rovers.

There was also two BMW 125i, a Mercedes Benz CLA 45, a Toyota Hilux Single Cab and a Volkswagen Golf 8R. He also owned a BMW X6, which he registered under his mother’s name.

However, Mnisi conceded to owning only four vehicles and claimed the rest of the supercars belonged to a third party and he was using them for free. “In the normal course of business, very few – if any – vehicle dealers or owners will allow the use of an expensive vehicle for months on end at no charge,“ read Liebenberg’s judgment.

“In the absence of explanation for the peculiar agreement between the respondent [Mnisi] and the third party, I do not accept the respondent’s version on this score. Yet, the exact relationship between the respondent and the third party remains a mystery. The explanation he offers for his use of various supercars and very expensive sedans are feeble and has no ring of truth to it.”

It also emerged that he was controlling two trusts registered in 2016 and 2021, which own 10 immovable properties worth R36m. One of the houses, valued at R9,5m, is in Mbombela. Mnisi lived in another home in Bryanston valued at R15m, which he had been building from scratch using cash.

Mnisi did not produce any financial statements for either of the trusts to the court, a stance that the court found to be “less than honest”.

“The respondent is not frank and honest in disclosing his financial affairs,” the judgement read.

There were also four companies he used as conduits for payments.

Last month Tshwane served Mnisi with a notice to suspend him following the revelations at the Madlanga commission. He, however, contested the suspension for lacking details of the alleged wrongdoing.

On Thursday, Sowetan sister publication TimesLIVE, reported that a special council granted Mnisi an extension to explain why he shouldn’t be suspended despite his demand for the suspension notice to be immediately withdrawn.

Mnisi did not respond to Sowetan’s request for comment on Thursday.

Sowetan