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Q&A with controversial businessman Kenny Kunene

Kenny Kunene.

Kunene divorce ‘not about lifestyle’

May 19 2012 at 12:35pm
By Sameer Naik

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Lucky Nxumalo

Kenny Kunene, centre, is also known as the Sushi King.

Kenny Kunene ‘devastated’ about divorce

May 15 2012 at 12:36pm
By Marvin Adams

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Lucky Nxumalo

Kenny Kunene, centre, is also known as the Sushi King.

Millionaire businessman Kenny Kunene and his wife Mathato are divorcing.

The ex-convict playboy, who’s known for eating sushi off half-naked models, told a local newspaper that they have decided to split after realising that “they have different visions in life”.

Kunene broke the news on his own reality show So What? on e.tv.

The ZAR nightclub owner has denied rumours that started last year that his alleged affair with a young radio presenter is to blame for their separation.

And Kenny expressed sadness that his 16-year marriage has come to an end.

“I was so devastated when Mathato first told me her reasons she wanted a divorce,” he explains.

“I went for two weeks without even shaving my head and beard. But I accepted it, mainly because I knew she wasn’t divorcing me because she doesn’t love me any more.

“We are just at different places in life.”

Meanwhile, Kenny denies rumours that he’s run out of money.

“Just because we closed down ZAR, it doesn’t mean that money has run out. Right now I’m wearing a R15 000 pair of jeans and an R8 000 Gucci shirt,” he insists.

“I still travel on a private jet, as people can see on my show. I still drive my cars and I stay at my penthouse in Sandton.

“I finance my reality show and I bet it’s the most expensive local production and I don’t even get paid for that or get any revenue from it.” - Daily Voice

Kenny Kunene divorce

South African controversial business man, Kenny Kunene, announced on his reality show that he is getting divorced. Ag shame!

South African ex-con playboy, business man, self made millionaire, owner of ZAR empire, Sushi King, DJ and ~~very well deserved and scripted and acted out~~ reality star of eTV’s SO WHAT, Kenny Kunene, announced last night on his show that he is going through a divorce with wife Mathato.

Honestly I have been wondering when will this day come. This guy is notorious for controversy.

Last year Sunday World ran a story on Kenny Kunene, stating that his philandering ways were leading to family drama and that his wife was divorcing him. He denied rumours that his alleged affair with a young radio presenter or the bed-sharing with three Swazi girls on his reality show is to blame for their separation.

The ZAR empire owner expressed his sadness at the end of his 16 year marriage. “I was so devastated when Mathato first told me her reasons she wanted a divorce, I went for two weeks without even shaving my head and beard. But I accepted it, mainly because I knew she wasn’t divorcing me because she doesn’t love me any more. “

He added that Mathato did not married him for money, as she declined a blank cheque he offered her. “She only wanted to keep the house that she lives in and wanted me to continue to pay for her car...I'm also going to continue supporting [his] children.”

The show follows Kenny Kunene as he lives the luxurious life (his unapologetic for his success and lavish lifestyle). In the show’s 2nd season its all about the business side of things, his personal life, the great parties that he hosts and attends, the ups and most definitely the downs ...because he is being divorced and that surely is a down.

Kenny Kunene-How much "Bling" is too much ?

My question is - how much “bling” is too much? Are African high rollers judged more harshly than, say, big-spending Russian oligarchs? Or is Vavi correct in saying that South Africa’s rich should be more circumspect with their wealth?

Posted by: CNN Correspondent, Robyn Curnow

KENNY KUNENE IN NEW YORK TIMES
Partying Amid Poverty Stirs South Africa DebateBy CELIA W. DUGGER
SANDTON, South Africa — Kenny Kunene, a former gangster turned businessman, gave what he called “the mother of all parties” for his 40th birthday. With his small paunch protruding from a white tuxedo and his eyes hidden behind Roberto Cavalli sunglasses, he ate sushi from the belly of a woman who was wearing nothing but black lingerie and high heels while hundreds of guests looked on.

As the revelers got tipsy on his liquor, he says he treated the most important among them — including Zizi Kodwa, President Jacob Zuma’s stylish spokesman, and Julius Malema, the rabble-rousing leader of the governing party’s youth wing — to $1,300 bottles of Dom Pérignon. Like the American rappers he emulates, Mr. Kunene himself swigged a bottle of Armand de Brignac Champagne that goes for more than $1,500 at his posh nightclub, ZAR, perched on the roof of a five-star hotel.

His October bash here in Sandton, a Johannesburg suburb often described as the wealthiest square mile in Africa, and another sushi-eating party that Mr. Kunene hosted recently in Cape Town, have turned him into a peculiarly South African sensation. His antics set off raucous bickering in the governing alliance about the conspicuous consumption of a politically networked black elite in a country where the majority of young blacks do not even have jobs.

Zwelinzima Vavi, leader of Cosatu, the powerful trade union federation allied with the governing African National Congress, accused Mr. Kunene of “spitting on the face of the poor” and declared that parties where people who have gotten rich in dubious ways flaunt their wealth “turn my stomach.”

Mr. Kunene, who says he supports the A.N.C.’s Youth League with his time and money, promptly retorted that his was “honest money spent on honest fun.” He describes his success as proof of the nation’s democracy, and he told Mr. Vavi, who is also black: “You remind me of what it felt like to live under apartheid. You are telling me, a black man, what I can and cannot do with my life.”

The Kunene story has crystallized a recurring question about life in post-apartheid South Africa: Is the accumulation and exhibition of such wealth a sign that blacks have finally arrived after an era when whites hogged the high life, or is it evidence of a moral decay undermining Nelson Mandela’s once great liberation movement?

“It raises in such wonderfully stark terms what freedom is and what one does with it,” said Jonny Steinberg, an author and one of the many newspaper columnists who commented on the events. “The idea that one uses it to get rich, and ostentatiously so, and that this is the most important dividend of freedom, is very powerful.”

In recent months, the spectacle of eating sushi from a woman’s body — perhaps familiar to Americans from Samantha’s escapades on “Sex and the City” — has been a source of both lurid fascination and ridicule here. A cartoon by the Mail & Guardian’s Zapiro, titled “The Last Sushi,” depicts a naked woman lying on a long table with well-known businessmen and politicians feasting on the fishy bits that decorate her curves.

That Mr. Kunene, a small-time player in South African politics, has vaulted onto the front pages underscores how salient the issue of economic inequality has become in South Africa, a country that by some estimates has the worst disparities of wealth in the world.

But the focus on Mr. Kunene, nicknamed the Sushi King by headline writers, is also a tribute to his obvious gifts for self-promotion and self-reinvention.

He was raised by his unemployed mother (an evangelical faith healer), his grandfather (a retired English teacher), and his grandmother (a midwife and the family’s only earner) in a black township outside of Odendaalsrus in what is now the Free State. The family could never afford to give him a birthday party, he said, and he always craved luxuries.

When he was a teenager during apartheid, he said he and his friends picked out the houses and cars in wealthy white areas they fantasized would one day be theirs. He dreamed of Porsches. “The objective was to overthrow the government and take everything that the white man had,” he said.

Like his grandfather, he became a high school English teacher. To earn extra money, he opened a small saloon, eavesdropped on gangsters and joined them, hijacking cars, robbing businesses and dreaming up ways to trick people out of their money, he said.

“My heart was not into armed robberies,” he said. “My heart was more into fraud because I’m a thinker.”

But he was caught and convicted in 1997 of helping run a Ponzi scheme. His case alone listed more than 1,900 victims, he said. He served six years in prison. After his release, he went into business with Gayton McKenzie, a bank robber he had befriended behind bars. They sold a book that Mr. McKenzie wrote about quitting a life of crime, and marketed Mr. McKenzie’s motivational speeches to schools and corporate groups.

They invested their earnings in a fish distribution business, Mr. Kunene said, and then started working as consultants to diamond and gold mining companies, helping manage testy relations with restive local communities and navigate the shoals of government regulation in a country governed by a black majority.

Last year, Mr. Kunene and Mr. McKenzie helped Gold Fields, a major gold producer, retain its mining rights to the South Deep mine southwest of Johannesburg, which the company describes as “one of the greatest undeveloped ore bodies in the world.”

“It’s a lot of political lobbying work,” explained Sven Lunsche, a Gold Fields spokesman.

At Mr. Kunene’s swanky apartment in Sandton, a snapshot of him with President Zuma is displayed in the living room. On his iPad, he flicked through photographs taken at his birthday party, showing pictures of him with the men he called “Zizi and Julius” — Mr. Zuma’s spokesman and the Youth League leader, Mr. Malema.

At the Cape Town party on Jan. 29, Mr. Malema was quoted as saying that Mr. Kunene’s club belonged to the A.N.C., but he later issued a statement insisting that he had said only that black people have a right to own a club in “predominantly white territory.”

Mr. Malema’s comments prompted Gwede Mantashe, the party’s secretary general, to starchily insist that the A.N.C. “is not into nightclubs or partying, but it is a revolutionary movement. We furthermore reiterate our condemnation to the act of serving sushi on a woman’s body.”

Kenny Kunene, Lil Kim and Fistaz Mixwell

Mr. Kunene this month bowed to his party’s wishes and foreswore sushi parties, but he could not resist noting that in South Africa, the rainbow nation, “I ate sushi off a black girl in Johannesburg. In Cape Town, I ate it off a white girl. I was intending to eat it off an Indian girl in Durban.”

Mr. Kunene has leapt into a life of fame and money, but often on Mondays he gets into one of his Porsches and makes the short drive to the poor and working-class township of Alexandra. “I don’t forget where I come from,” he said.

Uproar over Times journo’s sexual frolics with ‘Sushi King’

THERE KENNY: Kenny Kunene the ‘Sushi King’ and Times of Swaziland Entertainment Editor, Ntombi Mhlongo Social network site Facebook is abuzz with comments over a picture of Kenny Kunene the ‘Sushi King’ and Times of Swaziland Entertainment Editor, Ntombi Mhlongo. The picture was taken last August during the Bikers Party at the Mavuso Sports Café which had been attended by former Minister of Tourism and Environmental Affairs, Macford Sibandze. Over 60 comments were received after the picture was posted on Facebook’s gossip forum ‘Umgosi Eswatini’ from last Thursday. Most of the comments are derogatory against the entertainment editor. Facebook users have attacked Mhlongo but she hasn’t responded to any of these comments. In the picture, Mhlongo is dressed in a denim mini-skirt with a matching jacket, and reacts somewhat happily as Kunene frolics with her in full view of the public. Kunene appears to have his hand inside her skirt. The ‘Sushi King’ seems unmoved as Mhlongo smiles from ear to ear. Users have insinuated that the picture was photo-shopped whereas others dismiss that notion. Swazi girls were labelled as ‘cheap’ on Facebook, following their antics on Kunene’s reality show ‘So What?’ that is currently airing on e-TV. The episode, which featured Kunene’s trip to the country, shows snippets of him in his bedroom with some Swazi girls posing near his bed. The 30-minute reality series showed all ‘Sushi King’s movements while he was in the country -from his arrival at the plush Happy Valley Resorts to the Biker’s Party at the Mavuso Sports Bar. Facebook comments n A member of the welcoming committee in good standing n Ewu ds s d Ntombi Sushi Queen... n Awu???? n hhawu n A whole editor. n This is a DISGRACE..honestly.. I am disappointed!! n Damaged goods...walking wounded...factory faults....Nx. n Uze losisi utsi haleluya,,,,,yini kona lolokushuthe nalosisi webanftu? n You have let us down as women in the whole wide world,specially in Africa, who in her sane mind gets(f*****) in everyone's view, you are a disgrace woman..why didn't you at least book a room or something ngoba that sushi guy is loaded? n This pic has been photoshopped with Adobe Photoshop 7.0, I checked with my computer...

King of Bling ‘stands for the truth’

Carly Ritz

Kenny Kunene doesn’t apologise to anyone for his lifestyle. He has no regrets, except he never meant to disappoint his grandparents.

To the media and the public, Kenny Kunene is an Agner suit with Blue Label in hand – extravagant and over the top. But he was once just a boy who wanted to make his grandparents proud.

Raised by his mother and grandparents in Kutlwanong township after his parents divorced, businessman Kenny Kunene learned the value of hard work early. His grandmother was a midwife and his grandfather a retired teacher. To their grandson, they were heroes.

“In everything I have done in my life, I never meant to hurt them,” Kunene says, knowing his life is peppered with mistakes as much as it seasoned with success.

Kunene wears his heart on his sleeve and doesn’t mince his words. “I’m successful and I am entitled to celebrate.”

His anecdotes about his childhood tell the story of a boy with big dreams. His friends came from wealthy backgrounds and Kunene wanted in on the good life. He also wanted to wear the labels. But at home things were challenging. He grew up in a two-bedroom house with no electricity, no fridge or television. When it was hot, the fruit would be put in the coolest room in the house, on the floor, so that it wouldn’t spoil – a far cry from the man he is today with his fancy cars, expensive suits and bling accessories.

He ate pap and jam all the time. “Food is food”, his grandfather would say. He was a stern and logical man. “The reason we eat is so that we can have energy,” he would say. “You won’t be able to play if you have no energy and all the children will talk about you. When you go out after you have eaten pap and jam it would be as though you ate meat or chicken – no one will know, just don’t tell them.”

Kenny was a good student. The value of education was drummed into him early on and his peers came for help with homework. His teachers loved him and forgave him his sins when he stepped out of line.

His grandparents could not afford the fancy labels and told their grandson that if he wanted these things he would have to earn his own money. So that’s what he did.

His grandmother loaned him the start-up capital he needed for his small business – selling fruit at school during break. He would leave class five minutes before break to set up his stall. He made enough money to buy himself clothes and groceries for his grandparents. All they asked was that he repay the loan.

When his fruit business closed, he moved on to the taverns at weekends to clean up tables. He started DJing – music was always a passion – and running errands for illegal gold smugglers. They paid well.

Kunene followed in his grandfather’s footsteps and received a teaching qualification. But the money for his studies was not always available and he turned to petty crime. He would gun for the wallets of the “missus”, he explains. “There’s always money in the missus’ purse.” He was a hustler.

Kunene reflects on some of the lower moments in his life. “I stabbed a school teacher on a school trip,” he says. “I grew up fighting, so I carried a knife everywhere I went.” He should have been expelled, but his grandmother begged the school to keep him on. She bled for him, he says.

He reiterates that he never meant to hurt his grandparents – it’s the only tangible tinge of regret he shares. As she aged and became ill, his grandmother asked to see her grandson get married in her lifetime, so he dutifully married the woman who became pregnant with his first child.

The teacher, DJ and criminal put on a big white wedding for his grandmother and, two weeks later, she died. He is satisfied knowing he met her final request.

Family is key to Kunene and he will take on anyone who says otherwise. He talks about his time in prison from 1997 to 2003 openly, with the insight of a man who has had time to mull over it all. He has no regrets and is a better man for the experience, but his first comment about his time in prison is how difficult it was.

Kunene is a father of three, but cares for six children in total. His team of boys and a seven-year-old daughter live in his home in Welkom and he sees them regularly. He has a special relationship with his Grade 12 daughter, who lives with him in Sandton.

“I will not plan my kids’ lives, I can only guide them, but they know the rules,” Kunene says. “My daughter knows that if she falls pregnant, she must pack her things and the man must take care of her. Being a father of daughters is difficult.” It’s a hard line, but he only wants the best for his children.

“My daughter calls me Robert Mugabe,” he laughs. “She says there is no democracy in the house. If you saw the phone my daughter carried, you would not think she is Kenny’s daughter.” The world is not served to his children on a plate. He wants them to learn the lessons he did, to work for things they want in order to truly value what they have.

Kunene has always had a good rapport with youngsters and when he spent time in prison he was asked to offer counselling to the juvenile inmates.

“Prison is the house that made me,” he says. “I have no regrets for going to prison.”

Always the socialite, he threw parties in prison to boost the morale of the inmates.

The Bible presented itself to Kunene in prison. Now a born-again Christian and spiritual man, he is often hauled over the coals for his lavish lifestyle in the face of the poor. To the naysayers he responds thoughtfully: “The Bible says all of us are sinners and those who say they are not are making God a liar.” He doesn’t profess to be righteous and admits to mistakes. But where in the Bible does it say we must be poor, he asks. “I don’t make money to give it away. I make it to enjoy the finest things in life. I never had them, but always wanted them.”

He watched movies and wanted the lifestyle reflected on the screen. “The reason I am driving a Porsche is because of Scar Face,” Kunene says. “I watched it years back on VHS and this man, Al Pacino, who comes from Cuba, tells his friend I am not in America to wash dishes. He becomes a drug dealer. I don’t give a f@%^ what he becomes, but it’s his vision that I understand and I always said one day I would drive a Porsche – it was a dream.”

He hates being called a black diamond. “It’s an insult,” Kunene says. “The reason black people are called black diamonds when they make it in life is because Europeans always perceived us as slaves – destined to be poor – so the one who makes it must be rare, like a black diamond because they made it beyond expectation. You don’t hear about yellow diamonds or pink diamonds.”

Kunene has also been accused of degrading women – a statement at which he scoffs. “I am not degrading to women,” he says. “I love women. Show me that I am raping women or beating them up.”

There is one special lady in his life. But he won’t say who it is. “I don’t like going into very private things, but I will say every woman in my life is special to me.”

He doesn’t like talking about his philanthropic efforts either because that’s what everyone wants him to do – like he’s justifying his lifestyle – which he won’t, but, together with business partner Gayton Mackenzie, Kunene runs business mentorship programmes. He visits schools to talk about the dangers of crime and drugs. He shares his personal experience and story of upward mobility with the pupils who can relate to and are inspired by him.

Highly critical of local media, Kunene has had his fair share of bad press. Now he runs his own website, which he expects will rival newspapers. “Every journalist in this country will check my website for news because it will carry news that no one else will have – and about everyone.”

“Media in South Africa do not have balls. Some people are considered too powerful to write about. Media in this country is so biased. My website will have information about these people. News that will shock this country. I have given the team one mandate: to get the website up and running. I want to see a million views by the end of 2012.”

So who is Kenny Kunene in his words? “I’m a normal guy who stands for the truth. In everyone’s life there is something that can inspire you – we can learn so much from each other. Take what is good from each and every person that you meet – even if it is a hobo or a madman – there is something to learn from everyone and don’t judge.

The luxury cars and whisky existed before Kenny Kunene and will last long after he’s dead, he laughs.

Yes he’s a wealthy man with a dark past and penchant for pleasure, but he’s also just a dad worried about his daughter falling pregnant and a grandson who never meant to disappoint.

carlyr@thenewage.co.za

Kunene still has taste for controversy

Kunene still has taste for controversy

By Zama Nene

SUPPLIED
The King of Sushi, businessman and entertainer, Kenny Kunene, celebrates with VIPs and media at his first screening of his second season of So What, a reality programme on e.tv, at a Durban club.
Kenny Kunene was in Durban on Monday night – but there was not a naked girl, much less a serving of sushi, in sight.

The controversial businessman did, however, raise eyebrows when he provided miniature chocolate penises and vaginas in the press kits he doled out to his media guests.

Kunene was in the city for the launch of season two of his hit reality TV show, So What.

With him at the launch at Bellagio nightclub in Stamford Hill was his business partner, Gayton McKenzie, and some members of the show’s cast.

But all eyes were on Kunene, who was dressed in a grey ensemble with a pink bow-tie and his signature Louis Vuitton shades. Ever the showman, he took the opportunity to downplay rumours that he was broke, declaring: “I’m a hundred years from being broke ... and I will never apologise for celebrating my success.”

Kunene has come in for censure in the past for his his conspicuous consumption, including parties where sushi was served off the bodies of semi-naked women.

Two years ago Cosatu general secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi, blasted Kunene for throwing a R700 000 party, saying he was spitting in the faces of the poor.

An unrepentant Kunene on Monday night said although he lived an ostentatious life, he was charitable, but not in front of the cameras, and that giving should not be a showpiece.

Kunene promised So What would be different from season one. “The business side of our life will come out, you will see our international travels and mentoring sessions,” he said.

The first episode, premiered at the club, saw him being driven in a Rolls-Royce, throwing a tantrum over a small helicopter and eating traditional food on a private jet.

Same old 'So What' mumbo

Same old 'So What' mumbo
ANDILE NDLOVU |

With the second season of Kenny Kunene's reality TV show So What, premiering tonight, nothing about the first episode suggests that the second season will be better than the first.

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The high life is still on show - drinking expensive champagne straight from the bottle, being driven around in the best cars and flying around in private jets - but is far from being original.

The opening sequence shows unfavourable TV headlines and newspaper clippings screaming: "Has Kenny's cash run out?", "Kenny's last sushi dinner" and "Zar to shut down".

He then spends the next few minutes fretting about an accident on the road to Lanseria Airport, where he has to catch his private jet to Durban to give a talk as part of a mentorship programme he runs with business partner and friend Gayton McKenzie.

Even though he loses his temper because he is late for the talk, he still has the time to turn down the first helicopter they find to take them to the airport because it's not big enough.

"For us, it's a normal arrangement. It's the same as a guy being left by his bus and then takes his car," Kunene says.

Once in the more spacious chopper, Kunene and hip-hop artist Hydro (signed to Kunene's record label, Nu Money) indulge in tripe, sheep's head and dumplings while McKenzie and his daughter Moloko have a vegetarian meal.

"Some will say I don't have class. What is class? If your class is defined by food, then you have a problem," Kunene explains.

He adds that when black people move to the suburbs they "start insulting our food".

From then on in, the episode is McKenzie and Kunene giving a bunch of teenagers gathered at the Bellagio Hotel in Durban a talk on "making it" in life.

Channel spokesman Matlapulana Ragoasha said this season would see Kunene undertaking more international business trips.

So What, whose first season was, according to the SA Advertising Research Foundation, watched by 1.4million viewers on average, moves to e.tv's 8.30pm slot on Mondays, which used to belong to Hlelo and Ntando Masina's reality TV show, Blame It On Fame.

Confusion as 'Sushi King' Kenny Kunene probed for fraud

Confusion as 'Sushi King' Kenny Kunene probed for fraud
GLYNNIS UNDERHILL Mar 23 2012 00:00
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Allegations that former convicts Kenny Kunene and Gayton McKenzie defrauded poor Sowetan communities by persuading them to participate in a mining rights application for Central Rand Gold in Johannesburg are being investigated.

However, there is widespread confusion over the status of the police investigation.

The Mail & Guardian was reliably informed that the National Prosecuting Authority initially declined to prosecute the matter, although it denied the claim this week. The Hawks have conducted their own investigation into the accusations, but the NPA said it had not seen their docket.

"No one seems to know about this matter," said NPA spokesperson Mthunzi Mhaga.

But the NPA's asset forfeiture unit has now also initiated a probe, according to a source who is familiar with the details of the case. If the unit finds there is a case to be made against the two men, it can apply to the high court to seize their assets, which include a number of supercars.

This week Hawks spokesperson McIntosh Polela told the M&G that the unit had investigated accusations against Kunene and McKenzie involving the Central Rand Gold mining deal.

"We have done an investigation. However, our protocol doesn't allow us to give updates on ongoing investigations."

Sushi King is well-connected
Kunene, who served six years in jail for fraud, is well known for his ZAR nightclub in Cape Town -- the one in Johannesburg closed recently. He is regularly seen in the club and gained notoriety for eating sushi there off scantily dressed models, earning him the title of South Africa's Sushi King. His friends include members of President Jacob Zuma's family and influential ANC politicians.

By contrast, McKenzie, who spent seven years in jail for two counts of armed robbery, is a professed family man and prefers the quiet life, although he drives a Porsche and gives motivational speeches. He became friends with Kunene in jail.

CONTINUES BELOW

The communities involved in the mining application are not going to let the matter rest. They believe they were defrauded because the two men solicited their participation in the gold prospecting and mining application with promises of jobs and contracts, which failed to materialise.

Godfrey Makomene, the leader of one of the communities, said they were on the verge of raising the money to hire lawyers to take their case to court. They had heard nothing about official investigations.

"The police have never interviewed us," he said. "We have not heard of any developments.

"We were offered a 10% stake in Central Rand Gold, which is recorded in its application for mining rights and the memorandum of understanding between us. We were promised jobs and contracts. But we got nothing."

Company raises billions
Thirteen communities signed the memorandum of understanding with Central Rand Gold as part of its mining licence application, which was accompanied by a social labour plan. The company raised more than R1-billion after listing on the London and Johannesburg stock exchanges in 2007.

Central Rand Gold is currently embroiled in litigation over financial disputes with its empowerment partner, Puno Gold Investments.

Makomene said that, because the communities were poor, their complaints were being ignored.

Among the key allegations Makomene made was that community members were encouraged to open companies to make procurements and gain tenders. What happened to these companies should be of interest to the police, he said.

Kunene was given the title of executive of communities by Central Rand Gold and was put in charge of procurement, Makomene said.

McKenzie apparently held the title of chief corporate strategist for Central Rand Gold.

They were both reported to have earned huge salaries and were apparently given a R4-million bonus in 2009 for securing the mining rights quickly. The men have not worked for Central Rand Gold for the past 18 months.

Makomene said that since then 100 companies had been deregistered. He claimed they had been used for money laundering.

Locals haven't seen of social labour plan
Mark Diggars, a community leader who lives across a freeway from the Central Rand Gold mine, said the local people had not even seen the social labour plan, although it was said that it had been signed by community members without their knowledge.

"We are still waiting for our 10% shareholding," he said. "They are all just bluffing."

Neither Kunene nor McKenzie could be reached for comment and they did not respond to emails.

But both responded at length to emailed questions from the M&G last year about how they had acquired their wealth after leaving prison.

McKenzie said he had access to "investor capital worth millions of dollars".

"I am working towards my first billion. I will let you know when I get there."

McKenzie said he had gone from consulting on security concerns at Central Rand Gold -- "after all," he said, "who better to spot security weaknesses than an ex-bank robber" -- to advising the board on how to approach both the government and communities if they wanted to mine in Johannesburg.

Kunene said they had both become involved at Central Rand Gold as key executives. "The two of us played a strong role in the process of that mine applying for its mining rights."

Gold company 'going strong'
In late September last year, gold prospecting and mining company Central Rand Gold was forced to halt operations because of a decision by the minister of mineral resources, Susan Shabangu, to cancel its mining right.

According to the department, the company had violated two conditions relating to the mining work programme and its social labour plan.

This month, however, Central Rand Gold said the decision had been set aside by the court.

The company's chief executive, Johan du Toit, said it ran a "transparent operation", as a listed company was forced to do.

He said he was content with Central Rand Gold's progress, because it had increased its production by 60% in 2011, despite the temporary cancellation of its mining right. The company mines under Johannesburg.

Du Toit said Central Rand Gold was in the process of employing 225 people and the situation for the company had stabilised.

"Last year was a real tough year for us."

Du Toit said Kenny Kunene and Gayton McKenzie had done "a great job" for Central Rand Gold in coordinating its social labour plan and he was not aware of a police investigation.

Du Toit confirmed he had lent Kunene R1-million to start up his ZAR nightclubs. But, he said, the "Sushi King" had repaid the money. -- Glynnis Underhill

Surprise!

Mantombi Makhubele
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Even her best friend was kept in the dark as 'Generations' star walked down the aisle to tie knot with bishop

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A party fit for an emperor

ACTRESS and wedding planner Sophie Ndaba sprung a surprise at her Thanksgiving lunch on Tuesday that would have made her scheming TV character proud.

I was one of more than 200 guests invited to her annual soirée at Johannesburg's Summer Place.

But, instead of just a luncheon with friends and family, Sophie, known to most as Generations' Queen Moroka, exchanged vows with man of the cloth Bishop Keith Harrington.

And it was evident that religion plays a big part in the new couple's lives. The ceremony featured gospel music and sermons by several pastors.

Pastor Solly Mahlangu was the master of ceremonies, and we were treated to performances by Judith Sephuma, The Three Afro Tenors and Keke, to name a few .

Sophie deliberately kept herself scarce for the first half of the proceedings. Eventually she was heard on the loudspeakers telling guests how grateful she was for everything in her life.

Then the cat was let out of the bag when Keith and his best man walked to the front in their smart silver suits.

Guests gasped in delight as they realised they were actually there for a garden wedding. Sophie's teenage daughters, Shallon and Rudo, said they were told to come along as their mom was short of ushers for the "lunch".

No one seemed more shocked than talk-show host Penny Lebyane, who loudly exclaimed that her BFF had kept the wedding a secret even from her.

The bride walked down the aisle in a Gert Johan Coetzee gown as songstress Brenda Mtambo delivered a wonderful rendition of Jennifer Hudson's Giving Myself.

Keith, who is the founder of Keith Harrington Ministries and has a "healing centre" in Limpopo, took out two sachets of salt and handed one to his bride.

''Salt is also an antiseptic. When you came into my life, you healed all of my wounds and changed my entire life," he said.

Sophie's matron of honour was the ever elegant and beautiful Connie Ferguson. I was sitting behind her husband, Shona, and could not help noticing the two stealing looks at each other. It's obvious they're still very much in love after 10 years of marriage.

Other lovebirds among the guests were comedian David Kau and his wife, Thalia, who wore a stunning peach dress.

I felt a bit sorry for Penny Lebyane, who, had made a speech during the thanksgiving ceremony about how tight she is with Sophie. But she got over her shock soon enough and led the ululations with Sephuma and actress Rami Chuene. It was a nice touch to add some township spice to the northern suburbs.

Former Miss South Africa Bokang Montjane looked regal in her long floral summer dress.

I have to say well done to Ndaba's fellow actress from Generations Nambitha Mpumlwana, who was the chief organiser. She marched around the venue like a drill sergeant with a walkie-talkie in hand.

Uyanda's big bash

FASHIONISTA Uyanda Mbuli's All Things Fab Birthday Bash at ZAR Lounge in Sandtonon Wednesday night got off to a slow start, thanks to a broken lift.

I was just chuffed that I did not wear high heels.

Uyanda had a five-tier, red velvet cake decorated with lots of gold icing . I'm told it cost R12000 and was made by Linda Lipschitz of Belle's Patisserie.

Uyanda wore leather hot pants matched with a pair of gorgeous Christian Louboutin Daffodile shoes. The 16cm heels made her the tallest person in the room.

Her mom, Refilwe Makhapela, was also there, along with her sisters, Khosi Nyezi and Phumzile Mogodi. I never knew the always pleasant Uyanda had a cheeky streak. Annoyed at people chatting while her mother gave a speech, she grabbed the mike and ordered everyone to "Shoosh!"

Others there included model Jena Dover, comedian David Kau (he seems to be EVERYWHERE these days), actresses Rosie Motene and Faye Peters, and former beauty queen Augustine Chuene, who is married to lawyer Bally.

I hear the Chuenes will be holidaying in New York and Disney World in the US.

The venue's owner, Kenny Kunene, I am sorry to report, was well behaved. There was no sushi . He arrived with a Mafioso-looking guy in a grey suit and dark glasses who drank French champagne straight from the bottle. The cheek!

A happy and extravagant New Year

UK singer Cheryl Cole caused a buzz at tycoon Preston Haskell's New Year bash in Cape Town last year when she was spotted in public for the first time with squeeze Derek Hough
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SPLURGING millions on his New Year's Eve bash is nothing new for US billionaire Preston Haskell, who will again host the most exclusive party to ring in 2012 at his Fresnaye mansion in Cape Town.

Haskell has in the past hosted royals and A-list celebrities such as Princess Caroline of Monaco and her brother, Prince Albert, and Madonna and Elton John were also rumoured to have flown in to attend.

Last year his party made world headlines - it was the first time UK popstar Cheryl Cole was spotted in public with her then-boyfriend, Derek Hough.

So how will he top it this time round? Rumours have it that the property and mining magnate will fork out R12-million for a 1920s-style "Casino Haskell" theme.

Those lucky enough to get invited to the party - so sought after that organiser Sarah Cort is often offered thousands of rands for a ticket - have been promised an entertainment extravaganza with DJs from St Tropez and Greece.

Cape Town will also host the New Year's Eve Music Festival rave at the Cape Town International Convention Centre as well as a bash at the city's newest club, Bungalow . It opened last week and is owned by Chris Coutroulis, the owner of Sandton nightclub Taboo and husband of former Miss South Africa Vanessa Carreira.

Johannesburg nightclub owner Kenny Kunene has promised "fireworks" at his club, ZAR.

Kunene said he would have a display of "never-seen-before fireworks", whereas nearby Taboo will host its annual snow party.

East of Johannesburg, DJs Fresh and Euphonik will be at Nicci Beach at Wild Waters in Boksburg, where they will be joined by 25 other DJs on five dance floors.

In KwaZulu-Natal, a flood of international tourists and local holidaymakers booked suites, villas and grand ballrooms at some of Durban's five-star hotels and resorts.

Wayne Coetzee, general manager of the Oyster Box Hotel, said all three ballrooms - the Grillroom, Ocean Terrace and Pearl Room - were fully booked. Guests will fork out R1200 to eat fine food and have a good party.

Guests attending the New Year's Eve party at the Fairmont Zimbali Resort, on the KwaZulu-Natal north coast, have splashed out R1100 each for a feast of seafood and live entertainment at the "Miami White" party. - Additional reporting by Sunday Times reporters