By Lwazi Dlamini
SAVVY businessman Michelo Shakantu made a significant gesture by taking on a massive E124 million debt from Stage I Connections (Pty) Ltd, a shareholder in Eswatini Mobile Ltd.
This action preserved the estate of the late Victor ‘Maradona’ Gamedze from depletion in 2019. The executor of the estate, attorney Derrick Jele, detailed in court documents that on March 8, 2019, he received a claim from Waring Attorneys representing Eswatini Bank, demanding E124,979,442.89 from the estate. If this claim were honoured, it would have entirely exhausted the estate’s available funds.
“We needed to find strategies to avoid paying the Eswatini Bank claim using the estate funds. One of the companies in which the estate had an interest was Stage I Connections (Pty) Ltd, a shareholder in Eswatini Mobile Ltd,” Jele clarified in the court documents.
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Jele mentioned that Princess Lungile, Gamedze’s widow, suggested approaching Shakantu to take over the estate’s debt.
“Initially, Mr. Shakantu hesitated due to the enormity of the debt, but he ultimately consented after I urged him to assist the estate in honour of your late friend, Mr. Victor Gamedze,” Jele noted.
Shakantu’s decision safeguarded Gamedze’s estate. After discussions with Mrs. Gamedze’s lawyer, Mlungisi Khumalo, in her presence, the shares were transferred to Shakantu with the condition that he would assume the entire debt with Eswatini Bank.
“I also consulted with the beneficiaries through their attorney, Mr. Sabelo Masuku, and they all agreed to the share transfer,” Jele confirmed.
Jele explained that Shakantu opted to have the shares transferred not to himself personally, but to Cherry Bite, with the agreement formalized on May 28, 2019, which Mrs. Gamedze’s lawyer was aware of.
“Following the agreement, you (Shakantu) took on the estate debt at Eswatini Bank, and I disclosed the share transfer of Stage A Connection in the Liquidation and Distribution Account, with no objections,” Jele wrote in a letter included in the court documents as part of the answering affidavit.
This revelation emerged after Princess Lungile approached the High Court regarding the sale and transfer of shares once held by her husband at Eswatini Mobile, following Gamedze’s death on January 14, 2018.
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In her documents, the Princess claimed that her late husband’s shares were transferred to Shakantu without her knowledge or consent. She took legal action upon discovering that Shakantu was allegedly selling the shares to the Public Service Pensions Fund (PSPF).
In his answering affidavit, Shakantu stated that Princess Lungile had indeed consented to the sale of her husband Victor Gamedze’s shares at Eswatini Mobile, as noted by the estate’s executor, Derrick Jele.
Shakantu pointed out that the Princess was not yet clear about the legal action she wanted to pursue. He argued that she simultaneously claims consent for the sale and transfer of shares from Cherry Bite (Pty) Ltd to PSPF, while also stating in her affidavit that she would suffer irreparable harm if the sale proceeded.
Shakantu expressed regret that the court is dealing with Princess Lungile’s application, which he deems lacks the necessary legal foundation for the orders she seeks.
He emphasized that all beneficiaries of Gamedze’s estate, including Princess Lungile, consented to the share transfer.
He added that a letter from executor Derrick Jele dated August 26, 2024, confirmed that not only did Princess Lungile agree, but all beneficiaries did as well.
“The applicant cannot deny the beneficiaries’ consent to the sale and transfer of shares while simultaneously relying on a letter that clearly states she (and the other beneficiaries) consented. Furthermore, she fails to address the clear allegation of consent,” Shakantu argued in the court documents.
The matter is currently awaiting a decision from Judge Zonke Magagula.
