ANC Limpopo Warns Against Fake Accounts Being Used to Tarnish Party’s Image, SA Says It’s Too Late

• The African National Congress (ANC) in Limpopo has rejected claims of corruption made by a fake account
• ANC Limpopo Spokesperson, Jimmy Machaka, warned people against using fake accounts to tarnish the party's reputation
• South Africans were amused by the ANC's appeal, with many saying the party didn't need help to ruin its reputation

Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent 10 years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism.

LIMPOPO – The African National Congress (ANC) in Limpopo has warned South Africans against using fake social media accounts to tarnish the party’s image.

This warning comes after social media accounts were made under the name of the Mogalakwena Local Municipality Manager, Morris Maluleka. The account was used to make allegations of corruption against Limpopo Premier Phophi Ramathuba and Cooperative Governance Member of the Executive Committee (MEC) Basikopo Makamu.

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The account has since been deleted.

What did the ANC in the province say?

Speaking about the fake account, ANC Limpopo Spokesperson, Jimmy Machaka, said they were dismissing the allegations with the contempt they deserve. He explained that they were dismissing it because it was made by an anonymous source using a fake account.

“Someone decided to create a false account under the disguise of the municipal manager of the Mogalakwena Municipality,” he explained.

He added that in the event the allegations carried any weight, the person making them should approach law enforcement agencies in order to lay a complaint against either the Premier or the MEC.

What did the fake account allege?

The account under the name of the Municipal Manager alleged that he made corrupt transactions of millions of rands to companies linked to the Premier and MEC.

The account pretending to be Maluleka also claimed that he hired Ramathuba and Makamu’s family members at the municipality for services worth over R60 million. Ramathuba has since dismissed the allegations.

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Ramathuba is not the only ANC member to be accused of wrongdoing this year. In June 2025, Gwede Mantashe laid criminal charges against Zakhele Zuma, who claimed that the Minister of Mineral and Petroleum Resources stole R40 million during his time as general secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers.

How did social media users react?

South Africans took to social media to weigh in on the appeal from the ANC, with many stating that the party ruined its own reputation already, and so people didn’t need to create fake accounts to do so.

Tie Ralph Mnisi said:

“Can the image of the ANC be tarnished any further? One would have to need a magnifying glass to find an untarnished spot.”

Frieda Bontkowskyj agreed:

“Tell them there's nothing actors can do to help them. They did all the tarnishing themselves😂”

Niel Burger stated:

“We don't need to tarnish your reputation. It's already in tatters.”

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Bongani Winstead Zimba added:

“When I see the name ANC, I lose my appetite.”

Dehan Scherman said:

“I think they've done a pretty good job of tarnishing their own reputations without the need for fake profiles.”

Charlene Vicars laughed:

“We don't need to set up fake accounts to tarnish cANCer. They tarnish their own name.”

David Benedict Kiley agreed:

“Nobody needs to do anything to tarnish their image. They have been doing a perfectly fine job of that since their regime first came to power.”

Ntswaki Elliot Hutamo said:

“No one can tarnish the image of the ANC more than the ANC itself.”

Julius Malema exposes online imposter

In 2022, Briefly News reported that Julius Malema discovered that there was a fake account posing as him.

The leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) reached out to tweeps to report the account.

While some gladly agreed to help him out, others simply responded with wit and disinterest.

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Gayton McKenzie says allegations are an orchestrated campaign against him

Briefly News reported that Gayton McKenzie believes that the controversy surrounding his old tweets is part of a politically motivated plan against him. The Minister of Sport, Arts, and Culture believes that digging up old social media posts to allege he was a racist was part of a campaign against him because of the success the Patriotic Alliance (PA) has had in politics.

In a video on social media on Monday, 18 August 2025, the minister said he would not apologise for social media posts deliberately taken out of context.

Source: Briefly News