Gangster State

tapping into sources of funding,’ said one of the sources. ‘He got
money from the South African Council of Churches [SACC] and even
from Beyers Naudé, whom he was very close to. He also continued to
get money from Swedish donors.’
There was considerable unhappiness among some Free State UDF
members about this money, which was meant to assist activists and
help fund struggle activities in the Free State. As Magashule and the
Hillbrow group amassed more money, rumours and suspicions started
to circulate within the broader UDF environment that some of these
funds were being misappropriated.
According to one former UDF leader, the late Eric Molobi once
accused Magashule of abusing liberation funds. Molobi had been the
chairperson of the National Education Crisis Committee (NECC) and
apparently somehow got wind of Magashule’s alleged transgressions.
‘We knew Ace was a fellow that we had to treat with a degree of
caution, because there were issues over money that were never
resolved,’ this source explained. ‘This made us wary of him.’
A former struggle activist who later became a senior political leader in
the Free State, and one of Magashule’s many enemies after 1994 ,
described one particular instance where Magashule was allegedly
‘caught’ with a bag stuffed with cash. ‘During their Hillbrow days Ace
stole money that was meant for the liberation movement, so it never
surprised me when he started looting the Free State’s coffers,’ claimed
this person.
It is almost impossible to verify whether Magashule stole money
meant for the liberation movement. After the banning of the UDF and
its affiliate organisations in 1987 , these structures could no longer
receive donations in their official bank accounts. Therefore,