By Msimelelo Njwabane

TWO top Buffalo City Municipality councillors – one a former mayor – are under investigation by the Special Investigations Unit for allegedly obtaining fraudulent drivers' licences.

They are:

l Sakhumzi Caga, who was asked by the ANC to resign as BCM mayor after only a month and a week as mayor. Now a mayoral committee member, he was replaced by the current executive mayor, Zukisa Faku; and

l Councillor Monwabisi Mahodi.

Caga and Mahodi yesterday confirmed that they were under SIU investigation, and also that they would appear for questioning at the unit's offices in Vincent today.

The Daily Dispatch has seen documentary evidence that suggests the two councillors got their drivers' licences under suspicious conditions.

The documentation is in the form of an eNatis audit query report that shows that Mahodi did his test in just 31 minutes while Caga did his in two hours, which was over the mandatory time.

A source within the SIU said this information flowed from the national investigation on corruption in licensing departments that is being conducted on behalf of the national Department of Transport.

Caga and Mahodi have both denied obtaining their driving licences fraudulently.

"There is no substance to these allegations. I did not obtain my licence fraudulently," insisted Mahodi.

They both claim that the SIU investigation was linked to a power struggle for positions in the forthcoming Amathole regional elective congress of the ANC, scheduled for the end of the month.

"This is a conspiracy to destroy our political careers and our integrity as councillors," Caga said. "We know that the person behind this smear campaign is the ANC chairperson of the Nokhanime Thomas branch, Zolani Xego."

The two councillors claim that Xego vilified them because he believed that they were part of a conspiracy to ensure that Mayor Faku was kicked out of BCM following revelations about how she had misused a council credit card. And Mahodi added that it was also part of the ANC contest for provincial chairperson between supporters of Mcebisi Jonas and Phumulo Masualle.

Mahodi said: "Xego supports Masualle and we support the Jonas proposed list."

The regional ANC contest nominees aligned to Jonas are Sakhumzi Somyo (chairperson), Neo Moerane (deputy chairperson), and Joe Sotshana (secretary).

The line-up aligned to Masualle is: Mninwa Nyusile (chairperson), Faku (deputy chairperson), and Voti Zatu (secretary).

Yesterday, Xego denied having anything to do with the investigation.

"I only became aware of this SIU investigation when I was called by Richard Allie who is an investigator there," Xego said. "He told me they were looking into the matter after certain people said they had used my driving school to obtain their licences."

l Caga and Mahodi were acclaimed as action-heroes last month when they chased and apprehended a man suspected of stabbing and killing a petrol attendant at a Quigney BP service station in East London.

http://www.dispatch.co.za/article.aspx?id=327908