Bonang Matheba’s attorney releases statement to Jacaranda FM
Bonang Matheba is demanding R500,000 from a podcaster who made defamatory statements about her.
Bonang Matheba is not taking defamatory statements made about her lying down.
In the podcast, Matheba is accused of introducing drugs to her ex-boyfriend AKA. Podcaster Rea Gopane, co-hosts the podcast 'Everything SA Music TV' on YouTube.
READ: Martin Bester drops winning R50,000 Secret Sound clue video
Rea claimed that TV and radio personality Scoop Makhathini told him that Matheba introduced AKA to cocaine: “Scoop told us that AKA is on coke, and Bonang is the one that got him into cocaine. Scoop told us that, bro, after the interview we had him right here at this place.”
After Rea’s claims on social media, through her legal team, Matheba demanded he pay R500,000 in damages within 10 days.
@reagopane pic.twitter.com/Uy1mws0f6g
— Bonang Matheba 👑 (@bonang_m) May 16, 2021
On Tuesday, Matheba was unavailable for comment but her attorney issued a statement to Breakfast with Martin Bester, saying: “On 9 May 2021 Rea Gopane made certain reckless and defamatory remarks in a public YouTube broadcast which implied that Ms Bonang Matheba encouraged another well-known personality to use an illegal substance, specifically cocaine, and in the context of the discussion insinuated that this resulted in conduct on the part of that personality which caused his girlfriend to take her life.”
READ: South Africans fall for believable WhatsApp scam
Thomson Wilks attorneys added: “The allegations, besides being false and defamatory, were also shockingly insensitive and clearly intended to cause hurt and embarrassment to Ms Matheba and no doubt the other person mentioned by Mr Gopane in his self-promoting YouTube blog. Ms Matheba is in the process of instituting a defamation action against Mr Gopane.”
Tune in to the 'Breakfast with Martin Bester', weekdays from 06:00 - 09:00. Stream the show live here or download our mobile app here.
IMAGE CREDIT: Jacaranda FM