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Mistress in alleged love triangle with Mantashe and Mboweni: ‘It felt a little bit like a jackpot’

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Pretoria-based student Lerato Makgatho (26) claims that Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Gwede Mantashe, who is a married father of three, is still her boyfriend because he has never broken up with her
Pretoria-based student Lerato Makgatho (26) claims that Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Gwede Mantashe, who is a married father of three, is still her boyfriend because he has never broken up with her

Pretoria-based student Lerato Makgatho (26) claims that Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Gwede Mantashe, who is a married father of three, is still her boyfriend because he has never broken up with her.

She also says that Mantashe phoned her on Friday and had paid her a “girlfriend allowance” in April.

“Me and Gwede are fine; we spoke on the phone again today [Friday]. But me and Tito [Mboweni, minister of finance] are not in a good place,” said Makgatho.

Neither Mboweni nor Mantashe responded to questions about the alleged relationships.

A storm is currently raging around Mantashe.

Not only was he allegedly involved in a love triangle with Mboweni, but he has also been reported to Parliament over allegations that he claimed to have paid two Sunday World journalists R70 000 to make the story “disappear”.

In an abrupt about-turn, Mantashe said last week that he had actually lied to the newspaper about bribing journalists.

“I lost it. I completely lost it. Journalists make you go insane. They just don’t stop,” Mantashe explained.

But Makgatho appears to be in Mantashe’s corner when it comes to the bribery allegations.

In a frank interview on Friday with City Press’ sister publication, Rapport, Makgatho said she would have known if he had given money to journalists to guard their secret.

Speaking to Rapport from the Gold Rush Casino in Mabopane, she claimed that “that money (R70 000), he gave to me. It was my girlfriend allowance.”

Makgatho said she had also written a book about her experiences.

It is called The Dark Side of Being a Slay Queen and is scheduled to hit the shelves in two weeks.

“It took me two years to write the book, and yes, a few other famous names are going to come out,” she said.

In the book, she claims she was “blessed” when not just one, but two ministers fell into her lap, one shortly after the other.

She recalls her immediate thought: “God is on my side; another minister!”

And, she says: “It probably also felt a little bit like a jackpot.”

According to Makgatho, Mboweni came first.

“I met Tito on Facebook in March 2017. We were together for about two years. I left him for Gwede in November 2018.”

She claims that her problem with Mboweni was that he was regularly late and was not as “generous” as Mantashe.

Relating how she and Mantashe met, she said she was waiting for Mboweni at the five-star Sheraton Hotel, across the road from the Union Buildings in Pretoria, where they would have a buffet meal.

While she was waiting, Mantashe allegedly approached her and asked: “What kind of bastard makes a beautiful woman like you wait?”

“I didn’t even recognise him. I just thought: ‘Sugar daddy and money,’” said Makgatho.

Nathi Shabangu, Mantashe’s spokesperson, said on Saturday that they had no further comments to make about Makgatho’s allegations.


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