Opposition Citizen Coalition for Change leader Welshman Ncube has issued a stern ultimatum to Siqokoqela Mphoko, threatening a high-stakes defamation lawsuit if the latter does not retract a series of “false and highly defamatory” allegations against him.
Mphoko, the son of the late former vice president Phelekezela Mphoko and a former director of the Choppies retail chain, has spent recent months accusing Ncube of misappropriating approximately US$1.3 million.
The funds were allegedly part of a settlement paid into the trust account of Ncube’s law firm. Taking to Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), Mphoko has publicly branded the senior lawyer a “fraudster,” “thief,” and “dishonest” character.
In a blistering nine-page letter delivered to Mphoko’s Hillside home, Ncube’s legal representative, Josphat Tshuma of Webb, Low, and Barry, argued that Mphoko is acting with “extreme malice.”
The letter asserted that Mphoko was fully aware that his allegations were baseless, describing his conduct as a deliberate attempt to dismantle Ncube’s professional reputation.
Central to the dispute is the nature of the currency used in the original settlement. Tshuma argued that Mphoko—having managed Choppies’ bank accounts—knows the settlement was negotiated and paid in electronic RTGS dollars, not physical United States dollars.
The legal team allegedthat while Mphoko was a director at Choppies, he and his wife, Nomagugu, were involved in a scheme to exchange electronic RTGS for physical USD from supermarket tills—the very basis for previous criminal complaints against them.
The letter also clarified the distribution of the funds in question.
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According to Ncube’s lawyers, Mphoko received US44 000, for which he already holds an acknowledgement of debt and property security.
Ncube’s team highlighted Mphoko’s history of avoiding a day of reckoning in court.
A previous High Court claim (Case No. HC 2906/19) regarding these funds was deemed abandoned and dismissed on April 2, 2025, after Mphoko reportedly sought postponements nearly half a dozen times to avoid giving evidence under oath.
“If you genuinely believed that our client was a thief... you would not have abandoned your High Court claim,” Tshuma wrote.
Ncube is demanding a full retraction and a public apology.
Failure to comply will result in a defamation summons seeking punitive and exemplary damages. The lawyers warned that the lawsuit would serve as an example to those harbouring “ill intentions” against reputable professionals.
