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DA demands lifestyle audit of Ekurhuleni boss Kagiso Lerutla
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has intensified its calls for accountability from Ekurhuleni City Manager Kagiso Lerutla, demanding a comprehensive lifestyle audit following allegations about lavish spending, cash property purchases allegedly linked to musician MaWhoo and a reported trip to China involving municipal officials.
The latest demands add to a series of controversies surrounding Lerutla, who is already facing criminal charges of fraud, corruption and defeating the ends of justice in connection with an alleged court impersonation scheme dating back to 2019.
The allegations have also fuelled social media speculation involving celebrities and influencers, including MaWhoo, Cyan Boujee and Sithelo Shozi, with online discussions raising questions about luxury lifestyles, relationships and the possible source of money used to fund expensive assets.
Who is Kagiso Lerutla?
Lerutla is a chartered accountant who was appointed Ekurhuleni City Manager with effect from 1 November 2025. Before taking the top administrative position, he served as the metro’s Group Chief Financial Officer, having joined the municipality in 2014 after working at the Auditor-General of South Africa.
His responsibilities include overseeing the municipality’s administration, financial management and implementation of council decisions. The position places him at the centre of decisions affecting public spending and service delivery across one of Gauteng’s largest metropolitan municipalities.
DA wants lifestyle audit over MaWhoo property claims
In its latest statement, issued on 22 October, the DA called for a comprehensive lifestyle audit of Lerutla following social media allegations that he had bought properties in cash for musician MaWhoo, whose real name is Thandeka Ngema.
The party also wants clarity on reports that Lerutla may be travelling to China with two municipal officials. It questioned whether the reported trip complies with his bail conditions, which allegedly include surrendering his passport.
The allegations have not been established as fact, and the property claims require independent verification.
The DA’s Ekurhuleni mayoral candidate, Khathutshelo Rasilingwane, said the city had confirmed that lifestyle audits had begun within the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department, but had not yet been extended to senior municipal management.
The party is demanding that the city explain why senior officials have not been subjected to the same scrutiny, particularly amid wider concerns about procurement and the management of public funds.
Cyan Boujee, Sithelo Shozi and the influencer rumours
Lerutla’s legal troubles have also become a talking point in entertainment and social media circles, with names including MaWhoo, Cyan Boujee, whose real name is Honour Zuma, and Sithelo Shozi appearing in online claims about luxury assets and alleged links to municipal money.
In April, the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) dismissed social media claims that it had expanded its probe into Lerutla to investigate influencers’ bank accounts and assets, describing the claims as fake news.
The unit explained that its mandate is to investigate procurement processes and public institutions, rather than target individuals based on their celebrity status.
There is no official confirmation in the material reviewed that MaWhoo, Cyan Boujee or Sithelo Shozi are being investigated in connection with Lerutla’s case.
What about his wife, Priscilla?
Questions have also surfaced about Lerutla’s wife, Priscilla whom he has a clild with.
Accrding to a source, Lerutla married Priscilla at a young age.
“She was still in university when they met. She was young and innocent, and she was in love. They are still very much together and she minds her business in her corner.”
The source told Buzz Life News, that Kagiso also purchased a hair salon for another popular, married influencer before dating Mawhoo and Cyan.
“He is quite the spender and h spoils his girls.”
Despite his scandals, the focus of the current calls form the DA for accountability remains Lerutla’s public responsibilities, the pending criminal proceedings and the demand for scrutiny of his financial affairs.
The R400,000 court impersonation allegations
The latest lifestyle audit demand comes against the backdrop of an existing criminal case involving Lerutla and former Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi.
The case relates to an alleged incident in 2019, when Lerutla was arrested for speeding and was required to appear in court. The state alleges that another person was arranged to impersonate him during subsequent court proceedings.
Prosecutors allege that Lerutla paid approximately R400,000 to Mkhwanazi and the alleged impersonator as part of the scheme.
Both men face charges including fraud, corruption and defeating the ends of justice. Lerutla has contested the case, and his legal team indicated in September that it intended to make representations to the Director of Public Prosecutions seeking the withdrawal of the charges.
The allegations remain subject to the legal process and must not be treated as a conviction.
Separate allegations of political interference
In May, the DA also approached the Public Protector over allegations of maladministration involving Lerutla and other municipal officials.
The complaint followed the circulation of an alleged leaked voice recording involving former Ekurhuleni MMC Sivuyile Ngodwana and suspended head of human resources Linda Gxasheka. The DA alleged that Lerutla had used his position to influence council votes in exchange for funding being directed to political parties associated with certain councillors.
The party argued that the allegations warranted investigation into possible abuse of power and contraventions of legislation governing corruption and political party funding.
The municipality disputed the characterisation of the claims, with its spokesperson saying the allegations related to the officials and politician involved in the recording and that they should respond to them.
The claims have not been established as proven wrongdoing by Lerutla.
Questions over accountability in Ekurhuleni
The DA’s latest demand raises broader questions about how senior municipal officials are scrutinised, particularly when allegations concern their personal finances and potential access to public resources.
A lifestyle audit could help establish whether an official’s declared income and assets are consistent with their known financial circumstances. However, such an audit is not itself proof of corruption, and any findings would need to be assessed through the appropriate legal and administrative processes.
The DA is demanding answers. The public will ultimately need verified findings from the relevant authorities, rather than social media speculation, to establish whether any wrongdoing occurred.
Economy
The Scorpion Kings’ burgers are all sold out, but the Scorpion Kings Live are back tonight on SABC 1
Before DJ Maphorisa and Kabza De Small were filling FNB Stadium with Amapiano, there was the hustle – and for Maphorisa, part of that hustle involved food.
Long before the Scorpion Kings name became synonymous with some of South Africa’s biggest musical moments, Maphorisa was finding different ways to make money while pursuing his music career.
“I used to deejay on weekends and I opened a tuck-shop at home just to have a cash flow and at school I used to sell sweets and lollipops,” Maphorisa said.
He explained that the money helped him save for his first car and travel between Pretoria and Johannesburg while working towards his music career.
So, years later, seeing the producer put his name to a burger collaboration feels like a rather delicious full-circle moment.
The Scorpion Kings – Maphorisa and Kabza De Small – teamed up with RocoMamas in September for the limited-edition King’s Feast, a menu inspired by their personalities, their music and plenty of South African flavour.
The collaboration ran until 30 September, meaning the burgers have now officially left the menu – but having tasted them, there is plenty to talk about.
Madumane Double – big, saucy and properly Mzansi
The DJ Maphorisa-inspired Madumane Double did not arrive quietly.
The burger featured a 200g double beef smash, chakalaka, chorizo and cheese, all packed into a brioche bun. RocoMamas positioned it as the “main drop” of the collaboration.
The first bite was very much about the beef, but then the chakalaka came through with that familiar South African kick.
Spicy, savoury and gloriously messy, it was the sort of burger that requires you to abandon any plans of eating neatly.
And there was something particularly kasi about that combination.
Chakalaka was not there as a gimmick. It gave the burger a distinctly South African personality, taking the familiar smashburger format and throwing in a flavour many Mzansi households know very well.
RocoMamas described the collaboration as burgers built by the two artists “the way they build a track – layer on layer until it hits.”
That description actually makes sense.
Papta Sting brings the heat
Then came Kabza De Small’s Papta Sting – and this one was for the spice chaser.
The burger combined southern-fried chicken with atchar and jalapeños on a brioche bun. RocoMamas summed it up neatly: “Sweet on the way in, sting on the way out.”
And that is pretty much the assignment.
The chicken brings the crunch, the atchar delivers that sweet-sour South African flavour, and then the jalapeño arrives with a little extra attitude.
It is the kind of burger that makes you pause after the first bite and ask yourself whether you really want another one.
Naturally, you do.
Kabza’s association with the burger also made sense because the collaboration was built around flavours that feel familiar to South African palates rather than trying too hard to reinvent the wheel.
It tasted like the kasi – with a RocoMamas twist
The King’s Feast was at its most interesting when it leaned into flavours that South Africans already know.
Chakalaka. Atchar. Pap balls. Big portions. Messy eating. Food made for sharing.
RocoMamas itself described the campaign as being inspired by the “grootmans of the yanos”, while its promotional material leaned heavily into the idea of bringing South African flavour to the menu.
That made the collaboration feel like more than simply putting two famous names on burgers.
Amapiano has always been closely connected to place, community, language, fashion, dance and everyday South African life. The King’s Feast borrowed from that same cultural vocabulary and put it on a plate.
And yes, chakalaka on a burger works.
There, we said it.
The timing was perfect
The RocoMamas collaboration formed part of the build-up to Scorpion Kings Live at FNB Stadium on 19 September.
RocoMamas was an official activation partner for the massive concert, alongside brands including SABC1, which was the official broadcast partner.
The King’s Feast was available throughout September before ending on 30 September.
So if you were planning to rush to RocoMamas today for a Madumane Double or Papta Sting, unfortunately, you have missed the boat – or in this case, the burger.
But there is another Scorpion Kings moment waiting tonight.
From the burger to the big screen
Scorpion Kings Live is making its television debut on SABC1 today, Saturday, 3 October, at 20:00.
The concert, which was staged at FNB Stadium on 19 September, will be broadcast for the first time on television, with a simultaneous broadcast on SABC Plus. SABC1 confirmed the broadcast as part of its partnership with the event.
For viewers who were not inside FNB Stadium, tonight is the chance to experience the scale of the show from home.
SABC Video Entertainment Marketing Manager Dichaba Phalatse described the concert as “more than a concert” and “a defining South African cultural moment”, saying SABC1 wanted to bring the energy of FNB Stadium to audiences across the country.
The Scorpion Kings themselves said: “Scorpion Kings Live was too special to be experienced for one night only.”
They added: “Now, for the first time, people across South Africa can relive that experience from wherever they are.”
And that is where the RocoMamas collaboration comes full circle.
The burgers may have disappeared from the menu, but the music is still very much on.
So, what was the foodie verdict?
The Madumane Double was the heavyweight – beefy, saucy, cheesy and carrying enough chakalaka to remind you that this was never meant to be just another burger.
The Papta Sting was the cheekier one – crispy chicken, atchar and jalapeño bringing the sweet-and-sting combination promised in the name.
Neither needed to pretend to be fine dining.
They were burgers.
Big, messy, youthful burgers with a distinctly South African accent.
And perhaps that was the point.
Maphorisa went from selling sweets and running a tuck shop to becoming one of the biggest names in Amapiano. Now his name has been attached to a burger loaded with chakalaka.
Not a bad journey.
The King’s Feast may have left RocoMamas on 30 September, but the Scorpion Kings are back on screen tonight.
So get your snacks sorted, turn up the volume and settle in for FNB Stadium from your sofa.
Just don’t blame us if watching Kabza and Maphorisa perform makes you hungry.
That part is on you.
