North West businessman Benjy Maponya has broken a three-year silence over a bitter business dispute involving mining entrepreneur Solomon “Solly” Soka Madibela best known as MySol and the N4 Cluster operation at Samancor’s Buffels West mine.
Maponya alleges that he was instrumental in establishing the operation before bringing Madibela in as a technical partner, only for their relationship and business arrangement to later collapse over payments, control of the operation and a series of personal demands he says were made of him.
His account, published publicly on 7 October 2026, has not been tested in court and should be understood as allegations made by Maponya. There is currently no verified court judgment establishing his version of events.
How the business relationship began
According to Maponya, the story started when he was involved in an opencast mining project at Buffels West, involving Samancor Chrome and VJ Coal.
When VJ Coal was liquidated, Maponya says he needed a technical partner to continue with the operation. He approached Madibela, whom he describes as a close friend and someone he regarded as a brother.
Maponya recalled the relationship before their falling-out, saying: “We used to share a 2kg chicken portion.”
He also said he had trusted Madibela deeply, adding: “I used to borrow him my car. We were like brothers. I trusted him with my life, not knowing that he would betray me in the worst possible way.”
Madibela is the founder and CEO of MySol Holdings & Logistics, a North West-based mining and logistics company. MySol says it was established in 2018 and currently operates eight opencast chrome mining sites for Samancor Chrome between Mooinooi and Brits.
A 2025 industry profile also identified the Buffelsfontein West open-cast mine as one of MySol’s projects under Samancor.
The N4 Cluster dispute
Maponya claims the two men entered into a joint-venture arrangement under which Madibela would provide technical expertise while Maponya remained involved in the business.
According to his account, tensions began when disagreements arose over payments.
Maponya alleges that he was subsequently presented with a number of conditions if he wanted to continue receiving payments connected to the operation.
Among the alleged demands, he says, was that he leave his wife, move from his home in Hartbeespoort to Majakaneng, stop certain community activities and delete his Facebook account.
Maponya says he rejected the demands.
He specifically challenged the alleged demand involving his marriage, writing: “Tell them how you wanted me to leave my wife and promised if I did, you would continue to pay me.”
“I refused all of it,” he said.
Maponya further alleges that his refusal resulted in him being excluded from the business premises and that the contract was subsequently re-advertised and taken over by Madibela’s MySol Holdings.
The financial fallout
The dispute, according to Maponya, had consequences beyond losing his involvement in the mining operation.
He says he had bought a house in Hartbeespoort for about R2.1 million and was paying approximately R115,000 a month.
According to his account, he had reduced the outstanding balance to about R700,000 when the income he depended on stopped.
After allegedly being unable to maintain the instalments for nine months, Maponya says he ultimately surrendered the property.
He and his wife then moved to Majakaneng, where he says they built a modest three-room structure on family property.
“I cannot challenge it because I cannot afford court,” Maponya said.
He added that he chose to rebuild his life with his wife rather than abandon the marriage over the dispute.
“I decided to leave it and start a new life with my wife – the woman I chose over money,” he said.
From mining partnership to a very different business empire
The dispute comes against the backdrop of Madibela’s rapid rise in the mining industry.
MySol describes itself as an integrated opencast mining and bulk earthworks company, providing drilling and blasting, loading and hauling, crushing and screening, rehabilitation and related services.
The company says its operations have expanded significantly since its establishment, with more than 2,500 employees and a fleet of more than 207 machines.
Madibela has also become increasingly visible publicly. In 2026, his reported acquisition of a multimillion-rand Clifton property and lavish celebrations attracted considerable media attention.
Maponya’s account therefore presents a starkly different side to the growth of the mining operation – one centred on the alleged breakdown of a personal friendship and business relationship.
Maponya says he stayed silent for three years
Maponya says he deliberately remained quiet about the dispute for approximately three years despite having previously received approaches from major broadcasters.
He now says circumstances surrounding a separate matter have prompted him to speak publicly.
According to his statement, he is currently involved in efforts to seek justice for a person who was allegedly murdered, with five suspects reportedly still at large.
He also alleges that he has been subjected to intimidation and attempts to discredit him, including what he describes as fabricated rape allegations circulated through leaked voice notes.
Those allegations have not been independently verified.
Maponya further claims that, three years ago, people posing as police officers were sent to his home to intimidate his wife.
An appeal for legal help
Maponya says his financial position has made it difficult for him to challenge what he believes happened to him through the courts.
He is now appealing for legal assistance, funding and personal security as he prepares to pursue the issues surrounding the dispute.
“Today I am calling out to those who wanted to assist me with funding and personal security to assist me with this case because I am now afraid my life will be at risk once I release this,” he said.
“My silence about our story does not mean I have nothing to say.”
What is established – and what remains disputed
There is an important distinction between the claims made by Maponya and independently established facts.
Public information confirms that MySol Holdings and Logistics is a significant mining contractor with operations involving Samancor Chrome. The company’s own website states that it currently operates eight Samancor opencast chrome sites in the North West.
However, the specific allegations made by Maponya about the origins of the N4 Cluster, the terms of his alleged joint venture, the payment dispute, the personal conditions he says were imposed on him and the circumstances surrounding the loss of his property have not been established by a court in the sources reviewed for this report.
Samancor has also been involved in separate litigation concerning mining rights and operations in the North West and elsewhere. Those cases, however, should not be conflated with Maponya’s allegations about his relationship with Madibela.
As of 8 October 2026, no response from Madibela or MySol directly addressing Maponya’s latest allegations was found in the sources reviewed.
The dispute therefore remains a contested account, with Maponya now publicly asking for the opportunity and resources to take his claims further.
The story now
For Maponya, the dispute is no longer only about a mining contract.
It is about what he says was the collapse of a friendship, the loss of a business opportunity, the surrender of a R2.1 million home and the decision to stand by his marriage when, according to his account, he was allegedly pressured to choose between his personal life and his business interests.
His decision to speak publicly after years of silence puts the N4 Cluster dispute back into the spotlight – but whether his allegations ultimately translate into a legal challenge, and whether the other parties dispute them formally, remains to be seen.
