"I was not born in 1979’: Brown Mogotsi says Home Affairs got his birth date wrong

North West businessman, Brown Mogotsi has told the Madlanga Commission that his date of birth was incorrectly recorded by Home Affairs, explaining the discrepancies over his age during his time in Umkhonto we Sizwe.

Mogotsi said he was born on September 22, 1977, not in 1979 as reflected on his identity documents. He said he and his family had tried for years to correct the error.

The commission questioned Mogotsi on Thursday about how he could have joined the ANC’s military wing in 1993 at the age of 13. Mogotsi insisted that he was older and maintained that he was a member of Umkhonto we Sizwe between 1993 and 1995, even though the organisation had been officially disbanded in 1993.

“My date of birth at Home Affairs, even my mother knows it was an error,” Mogotsi said. “I was not actually born in 1979. We have tried to rectify it. I was born on 22 September 1977.”

Mogotsi also faced questions about his role as a contact agent for crime intelligence. He acknowledged that he had no formal policing or forensic qualifications but said he had basic counterintelligence training. He admitted that he could not provide the commission with documents to support his claim of conducting investigations, explaining that reports and information were kept with his handler.

The commission questioned him about his communications with the suspended Minister of Police Senzo Mchunu including the use of secure messaging apps like Signal. Mogotsi said he had used both Signal and WhatsApp to communicate with the minister and others depending on the circumstances, but he could not recall details of certain messages, including one sent in December 2024 referencing a “breakthrough.”

Despite the lack of supporting documents, Mogotsi maintained that his work as a contact agent and his intelligence activities were legitimate, adding that relevant files were maintained by his handlers.