Taxi boss Joe "Ferrari" Sibanyoni testified at the Madlanga Commission in South Africa, where he faced days of questioning over various allegations, including WhatsApp messages, payments, alleged extortion, and his involvement with a convicted hitman. Sibanyoni denied wrongdoing and challenged the allegations put to him. The commission is investigating tender irregularities, including a R500 million tender, and allegations of extortion and violence linked to Sibanyoni's taxi business.
Sibanyoni was questioned about WhatsApp messages, including one that described him as the "new sheriff in town" after the death of former taxi boss Mswazi Msibi. He rejected the description, saying he preferred "the president". The messages were obtained from his associate's phone, Bafana "King of the Sky" Sindane. Sibanyoni disputed the suggestion that the messages established his involvement, saying he neither sent nor remembered receiving them.
The most explosive evidence concerned PUTCO, a bus company. Video footage was put to Sibanyoni from a 2024 meeting involving President Cyril Ramaphosa and Minister Gwede Mantashe, during which he demanded a 30% local stake in PUTCO and warned that, if people heard of disruptions to the bus company's operations, "they must know it's us". Sibanyoni denied ordering attacks and maintained that his language referred to community involvement rather than violence.
Sibanyoni's relationship with violence came under renewed scrutiny when he was questioned about paying the legal fees of Gwabo Mahlangu, a convicted hitman linked to taxi-related murders. Sibanyoni claimed that Mahlangu's mother asked him to finance the defence. The commission also heard that 50 PUTCO buses were torched in January 2025, which Sibanyoni denied involvement in.
Another thread involved businessman Dr Tengane Ntuli and payments totalling about R2.29 million. Sibanyoni acknowledged receiving R100,000 monthly through what he described as a verbal "local content" partnership, but conceded that he performed no physical work for the payments. He rejected the characterisation of the arrangement as extortion and instead blamed his associate, Bafana "King of the Sky" Sindane, for allegedly acting alone in sending threatening messages to Ntuli.
Throughout the testimony, Sibanyoni's legal team also invoked his pending criminal matters in Delmas and Kwaggafontein. The commission pushed back, with evidence leader Advocate Matthew Chaskalson and Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga stressing that a claim of privilege against self-incrimination had to be made in response to specific questions rather than deployed as a blanket protection.
Sibanyoni ended his testimony by quoting the Bible, specifically Matthew 5:11-12, casting himself as a man enduring persecution. He concluded his testimony with a final warning: "See me when I see you... If you don't, we shall see one another in the near future." The commission has stood down its public hearings and is scheduled to resume on November 9.
Key points
- Sibanyoni denied ordering attacks on PUTCO buses despite warning of disruptions if a 30% local stake was not granted.
- Sibanyoni acknowledged receiving R100,000 monthly payments from Dr Tengane Ntuli but denied extortion.
- Sibanyoni quoted the Bible, specifically Matthew 5:11-12, in ending his testimony at the Madlanga Commission.
