Operation Vula Exposed – Part 1

Operation Vula Exposed – Part 1

On 12 July 1990, Siphiwe Nyanda (aka “Gebhuza”) and Raymond Lalla (aka “Brazzo”) met at No. 48, the Knoll, in Durban’s Kenville suburb, where Nyanda informed Lalla that Charles Ndaba had disappeared and they were not sure of what was happening. As a result, Nyanda advised Lalla to prepare to move from his place to another location.

When Nyanda left the property, entering into a white Toyota Cressida, which was registered ND 268230, he was being watched by apartheid Security Branch Officers Lawrence Wassermann and Salman du Preez, who were sitting in a Nissan sedan. When the Toyota Cressida left into Umgeni Road, just outside the Knoll, Nyanda began to suspect that he was being followed by a Nissan behind him. Observing an erratic behaviour from Nyanda’s Cressida, Wassermann and Du Preez began to realise that Nyanda was aware that he was being followed, and accordingly requested a reinforcing car to join the pursuit of the Cressida.

When Nyanda turned right into Brickhill Road, the Nissan blocked his progress, as Wassermann and Du Preez alighted from the vehicle with their weapons ready to shoot. They then pounced on Nyanda and immediately arrested him, with his arms behind his back and his eyes blindfolded, driving him back to the Knoll.

At the Knoll, the policemen began to interrogate him, as to who was in the house No. 48 from which he came out. He then mentioned that there was one person, Raymond Lalla, and there was nothing else in the house. When the police knocked on the door, Lalla opened and he was immediately arrested. After searching the premises, the police found weapons and a computer.

The weapons and the computer were tools of the project of the African National Congress’s (ANC’s) “Operation Vula”, which unfortunately became exposed on the afternoon of 7 July 1990, when Hendrick Botha received a phone call from Lieutenant Salmon du Preez, who informed him that an Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK) “terrorist” had been arrested and was in detention at the C.R. Swart Square Police Station in Durban. When Botha arrived at the police station he went to the apartheid Security Branch offices with Du Preez where they found an “Askari”, by the name of Vusi Ninela, who excitedly informed them that he had personally arrested Charles Ndaba (aka “MK Zwelakhe”), formerly active in the MK Natal Machinery.

Later that day, following Charles Ndaba’s arrest, Botha and Du Preez took Lawrence Wasserman and Casper van der Westhuizen in a Volkswagen Kombi to a place next to the Greyville Racecourse in Durban. In the vehicle they also had Charles Ndaba, who was allowed to get out and walk approximately a hundred metres to a street adjacent to the racecourse, while Van der Westhuizen and Botha were following him on foot.

Ndaba then entered a blue Toyota Corolla, which was then covered by the policemen after a signal was given, with Botha approaching the right-hand side of the car and placed a handgun through the open window at the stomach of Mbuso Tshabalala, who was in the driving seat. Tshabalala, who was the Commander of Ndaba’s underground unit, was immediately arrested without any resistance.

Following these several arrests, Hendrik Botha and Johannes Steyn met the apartheid Police Commissioner, General Johan van der Merwe, four days later, briefing him about the nature of their unusual breakthrough. After they had briefed him, Van der Merwe then indicated that due to the sensitive nature of the arrests, the apartheid State President and the Department of Foreign Affairs were to be informed of the identity and the objectives of the people involved in “Operation Vula”.

He then recommended delaying action against the “Vula” structures until the week beginning 16 July 1990 in order to create time for domestic and foreign intelligence services to be acquainted with the case. According to Van der Merwe, the intelligence service had to be prepared for the revelations because the detentions were going to have a very definite effect on the negotiation processes.

The arrest of Ndaba and Tshabalala on 7 July 1990 eventually, after five days, led to the arrest of Sphiwe Nyanda and Raymond Lalla on 12 July (to be continued).

Castro Khwela
Good evening fellow Compatriots!