Yakhe Kwinana's alleged extortion victims speak out

Former SAA board member Yakhe Kwinana allegedly used threats and violence against the occupants of her land in the Eastern Cape to force them to pay monthly rent.

Police described her arrest on Monday as bringing to an end her “reign of terror”.

Kwinana is accused of demolishing the houses of her “tenants” who missed rental payments at an informal settlement near East London airport. She would allegedly arrive with armed security guards and a tractor-loader-backhoe to flatten the homes of those who missed paying their R2,200 rent. 

These allegations led to her dramatic arrest by the police’s national intervention unit, Gauteng's serious and violent crime investigation unit, the tactical response team and the national traffic anti-corruption unit in Midrand. 

Kwinana appeared in the Randburg magistrate’s court on Tuesday to face multiple charges of extortion, malicious damage to property, and pointing a firearm. Police spokesperson Maj-Gen Nonkululeko Phokane said Kwinana is also linked to a series of taxi violence cases in East London.

Occupants of the land in East London at the centre of the case of alleged extortion told Sowetan that matters came to a head in January when Kwinana arrived with heavy security to demolish the homes of those who had missed payments since last year. 

One of the occupants, who asked not to be named, said her home was among those destroyed this year despite conceding to Kwinana’s rental demands.

“I have been paying since last year and I was shocked to find my house flattened one day when I came back from work. Now I stay with other family members,” said the woman who said she had been living there since 2021. 

Another occupant said she found her fridge and microwave outside her gate and all her other furniture and clothes stolen. 

Sowetan’s sister publication, Daily Dispatch, reported that the farm owned by Kwinana had been invaded by about 100 families who erected shacks and started building houses. In August last year, Kwinana visited the farm and ordered the occupants to pay outstanding rentals of R4,600 for July and August, and a penalty of R600.

At the time, Kwinana allegedly said the occupants would use access cards to enter the now-guarded property and become tenants.

In September last year, they refused to pay the rent and approached an Eastern Cape court to oppose her eviction notice. One of the lawyers representing the community said the application for an interdict to stop Kwinana from evicting the occupants was still pending in court.

“It is wrong of her to force them out when the matter is still in court,” said the lawyer, who did not want to be named out of safety concerns. 

More than 10 houses were flattened while some tenants had gone into hiding out of fear following months of harassment allegedly at the hands of Kwinana. 

One of the residents who led the court challenge said she had to go into hiding after she learnt that Kwinana was looking for her. 

“I was part of the group that was vocal in court and in December I was told that Kwinana was threatening to deal with me,” the resident said. “I left and stayed with relatives around East London. I then heard that she had demolished my house and took away my furniture. I have not returned to that place since because everyone is scared of her and some have been beaten by her security.”

According to the residents on the farm, the land originally belonged to someone else who has since died. They said they moved into the land in 2019 and a few months later Kwinana came under the pretence that she was also looking for a plot. 

“In 2020 she came back and claimed that the land belonged to her and produced an eviction letter which we did not know about,” said another occupant. 

Kwinana then imposed rentals.

“Those who have paid rent were given monthly access cards which expire at the end of each month. Those behind with rent were blocked out of the premises. Sometimes the security would assault people and point firearms at them,” said another occupant.

Kwinana is no stranger to Gauteng courts.

In November 2024, she appeared in the Palm Ridge specialised commercial crime court on fraud charges linked to her alleged failure to disclose that her auditing firm, Kwinana and Associates, had previous contractual relationships with PwC and Nkonki Incorporated. The two companies were awarded a multi-year auditing contract that cost SAA about R59m. Kwinana was granted bail of R20,000 in that matter despite pleading poverty.

She served as a board member at the national carrier between 2009 and 2016, and came under the spotlight when she appeared at the Zondo Commission on corruption allegations at SAA. 

Gauteng National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwana said the NPA only received the Kwinana docket on Tuesday morning when she was arrested in Gauteng. They had to take the matter to court so she could appear before a magistrate within 48 hours of her arrest and then transfer the case to the Eastern Cape.

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