Man denies Bobani's claim that he took firearm to City Hall

"There was no gun. I don't own a gun and I don't even have a gun licence."

A Port Elizabeth man has identified himself as the individual who demanded a house from Nelson Mandela Bay mayor Mongameli Bobani during a meeting in the mayor's office in February.

The man, Danisile Ngobo, vehemently denies pulling out a gun or making any references to a firearm.

Ngobo said he had an appointment with Bobani for February 25, with the meeting having ended on a good note.

He said the mayor even promised to have the relevant departments resolve his housing request.

In an article published in The Herald on February 27, Bobani alleged that on February 25, a mysterious man breezed through security guards and sat for several hours at City Hall waiting for an opportunity to speak to him.

Bobani alleged that the man pulled out a gun and showed it to him, also demanding the city give him a house.

Speaking at a media conference alongside DA councillors Athol Trollip, Nqaba Bhanga and John Best on Monday, Ngobo said he sat for hours outside Bobani's office alongside his wife, Bongiswa.

Their daughter later joined them when they picked her up from school.

In a sworn affidavit, which he said he handed over to the metro police three days after the article was published, Ngobo – a former member of the SA National Defence Force – said that after his house burnt down, he made arrangements to see Bobani.

On the day of the incident, Ngobo said both he and his wife met the mayor in his office while the security director Shadrack Sibiya was standing in the doorway.

Sibiya denied that he was at City Hall at the time.

But Ngobo said: "The mayor then said we need to finalise this matter once and for all tomorrow and that all the parties involved would be called.

"We shook hands and we left after five minutes.

"Whilst in the office of the mayor, neither my wife nor myself put any object on the table of the mayor and neither did my wife point any object at the mayor."

He said he did not know why anyone would make false allegations against him.

Ngobo said he wanted to clear his name although Bobani had never named the man, saying at the time that he did not take down his details.

Bobani said on Monday he stood by what he said in the interview with The Herald. He declined to comment further.

Safety and security political head Litho Suka said its investigation found there had been an arrangement between Bobani and Ngobo to see each other on that particular day.

"As such, this thing was blown out of proportion, or out of context," Suka said.

Asked whether a gun was involved, Suka directed questions to Bobani and Sibiya.

Sibiya declined to comment while municipal spokesperson Mthubanzi Mniki said the municipality maintained its initial position on the matter.

"This is a security matter. It is being dealt with at that level.

"The municipality will not comment or share information in relation to the matter," Mniki said.

The DA said it would join Ngobo in laying a complaint of crimen injuria and misrepresentation of information with the police against Bobani.

"Unfortunately, Mr Ngobo has been accused of a criminal act and his name and his rights have been infringed, and we are going to seek protection against these people," Trollip said.

"Secondly, we are going to open a case of defamation against Bobani for accusing Ngobo of a serious crime because it appears the metro police have done nothing about this and that is because the metro police are under the very same person implicated in this case."

Trollip claimed at the media conference that this was an attempt by Bobani to reinstate Afrisec Strategic Solutions, with which the municipality cut ties in 2016 and started legal action for R92m it believes it is owed.

The municipality is, however, pursuing an out-of-court settlement with Afrisec.

"Gang-related violence is claiming more lives and it is against that background that this is a concern.

"Bobani is fighting ... to have Afrisec's contract resuscitated. This is a manufactured lie to have the contract reinstated," Trollip said.