The Business Weekly & Review was informed by a South African law firm on Thursday afternoon of David van Niekerk’s intention to seek an interdict against the newspaper.
Assheton-Smith Ginsberg Incorporated, representing the controversial South African businessman David van Niekerk, has also lodged a criminal complaint against the newspaper’s Managing Editor. The threat follows a series of articles The Business Weekly & Review intends to publish about a scandal involving the alleged misappropriation of hundreds of millions of Pula by van Niekerk, affecting investors from Botswana, South Africa, and Eswatini.
Van Niekerk was the CEO of GetBucks Botswana (now FirstCred), which is under intense scrutiny for the misappropriation of over P300 million.
This marks the second time the newspaper has faced legal action from van Niekerk. Earlier last year, van Niekerk attempted to silence the publication through his local attorneys, Minchin Kelly, filing an application to interdict The Business Weekly & Review from reporting on his ongoing cases concerning the disappearance of hundreds of millions of Pula. The case is yet to be heard and is scheduled for December 6.
In a demand letter dated November 7, 2024, Assheton-Smith Ginsberg claimed that the newspaper defamed van Niekerk in a story published on November 1, 2024, and reported the matter to the Botswana Police Service’s Serious Crimes Squad.
However, the law firm did not clarify the nature of the “serious crime” the newspaper and its Editor allegedly committed. The disappearance of funds from companies managed by van Niekerk is a matter of public interest, as many unsuspecting citizens from Botswana and Eswatini have been affected.
The Botswana Police Service’s Serious Crime Squad is responsible for preventing, detecting, and investigating various crimes. The squad’s duties include documenting investigative processes, interviewing suspects, recommending actions in fraud cases, gathering financial documents, and securing evidence.
Eswatini Parliamentary Inquiry Ongoing Against Van Niekerk
While van Niekerk is attempting to silence The Business Weekly & Review over his ongoing cases of financial mismanagement, this publication has confirmed that a Parliamentary Inquiry into the funds lost at Ecsponent Eswatini is currently underway.
According to a report by Swaziland News, van Niekerk is allegedly wanted by the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), which is conducting a high-level investigation into the disappearance of over R300 million in investment funds belonging to the public.
Van Niekerk is reportedly wanted alongside prominent private investigator Nkosingphile Mbhamali, the director of Live Watch Security. It is alleged that Mbhamali helped van Niekerk evade arrest, and that van Niekerk used Mbhamali’s bank accounts as a conduit for paying senior government officials and others in governing structures, which prompted the ACC investigation.
Swaziland News also reported that van Niekerk had been flagged by police and law enforcement agencies but that the Minister of Home Affairs, Princess Lindiwe, allegedly facilitated the removal of the red flag through a letter signed by Mthkozisi Dlamini, the Chief Immigration Officer (CIO).
The R300 Million Scandal
The R300 million Ecsponent investment scandal is currently under investigation by several authorities, including the ACC, police, the Central Bank, Parliament, and Cabinet. However, these institutions appear divided on whether to arrest van Niekerk, especially after a forensic investigation commissioned by the Central Bank cleared him of wrongdoing in the scandal. This report contradicts earlier findings that implicated van Niekerk.
Zimbabwean-born businessman George Manyere, Chairman of Afristrat Investment Holdings Limited (formerly Ecsponent Limited), has submitted a report to the Eswatini Parliament regarding the ongoing Parliamentary Inquiry into the loss of funds at Ecsponent Eswatini.
The report, which was compiled by Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr Inc. under the instruction of the Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE), follows a parliamentary resolution calling for an investigation into the events leading to the collapse of Ecsponent Eswatini, which resulted in the loss of over E300 million in investments made by individuals and organizations in Eswatini.
The CDH report initially implicated Manyere as a key figure in Ecsponent’s operations. However, Manyere clarified, “I only joined the Board of ESWIG (formerly Ecsponent Eswatini Limited) on January 8, 2020, when I took over as CEO of Ecsponent Limited in South Africa. That was my first formal engagement with the management and operations of Ecsponent Eswatini. By that time, Ecsponent Eswatini Limited had already raised, invested, and was struggling to recover just over E300 million of investor funds from Eswatini.”
Manyere went on to provide details of transactions between Ecsponent Limited and van Niekerk’s connected companies, which resulted in over ZAR 1.5 billion in losses. Van Niekerk, a South African national, is currently embroiled in a legal dispute with ESWIG High Court and has also founded a building society in Eswatini, where more than E182 million has been lost through his connected companies. Legal actions are being pursued against him.
Manyere’s submission to Parliament included a detailed account of the lost funds, the alleged misappropriation, and the ongoing efforts to recover the investments. According to Manyere, Ecsponent Limited’s fortunes worsened when MyBucks, under van Niekerk’s leadership, collapsed despite significant investment from Afristrat.
Afristrat has since initiated five forensic investigations into MyBucks’ operations, three of which have been completed. Nearly all of Afristrat’s R1.5 billion investment in the company has been lost. Manyere explained that by the time he joined Ecsponent Limited in 2017, the loans that had been granted to companies connected to van Niekerk had already been defaulted on.
In 2019, MyBucks defaulted on debts exceeding EUR 100 million, and Ecsponent Limited stepped in as the largest lender to the group, advocating for management changes, which led to van Niekerk stepping down. MyBucks was subsequently placed into bankruptcy by Luxembourg authorities in 2022.
Afristrat has initiated several legal actions, including claims for E448,238,717.83 against MyBucks in bankruptcy proceedings, E195,934,860 against Ecsponent Capital (now Basira Capital), and legal efforts in Botswana to recover over P200 million owed by Bluthorn.
