By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Former Tshwane mayor Murunwa Makwarela was granted R10,000 bail after appearing before the Pretoria specialised commercial crimes court on Monday.
Makwarela, appeared briefly in the SCC after he handed himself over at the Brooklyn police station earlier today.
He was taken to court after the City of Tshwane approached the Hawks to probe him for fraud after it was revealed that he had produced a fake insolvency rehabilitation certificate.
Makwarela served as the mayor of Tshwane, from February, 28, until the city manager fired him on March 7 for being declared insolvent in 2016.
Through his legal counsel, Makwarela initially submitted to the courts to be granted bail of R2 000, as he had handed himself over to the police, would attend all proceedings and would not interfere with the ongoing investigations.
He also submitted he was a first-time offender, had no previous or pending cases against him, and was willing to hand over his passport and abide by any rules set by the courts.
State prosecutor Willem Van Zyl told the court the State would not be opposing his release on bail at the moment, however, he indicated a different bail amount had been discussed and agreed upon with the accused’s legal counsel due to the seriousness of the offence.
According to the Directorate for Priority Crime’s Colonel Katlego Mogale, Makwarela was facing two counts of fraud which is schedule five and uttering.
The court granted him R10 000 bail and instructed he hand over his passport to his investigating officer by April 4 before 4pm, and not to apply for any travel documents.
He is also not allowed to leave Gauteng Province, and should he have to travel out of the province he is to inform the investigating officer in writing 48 hours prior to the departure.
Makwarela chatted briefly to the media while he sat in the dock before the start of court proceedings. He said he was “expecting justice”.
“I feel blessed and highly favoured. Scriptures have been coming into play,” Makwarela added. He said he was no longer a member of Cope.