Zimbabwean Businessman Moreboys Munetsi Wins R5 Million Defamation Case in South Africa

By Southerton Business Times Reporter | Johannesburg

South African-based Zimbabwean businessman and philanthropist Moreboys Munetsi has won a R5 million defamation lawsuit against social media user Louisa Jembe after the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, ruled that Facebook posts accusing him of fraud were defamatory and infringed his dignity. The judgment, delivered on 24 July 2026 under case number 2026-090944, found in favour of Munetsi and ordered Jembe to remove the offending content, issue a public apology and pay legal costs.

In her ruling, Judge Mabaeng Masenyani Daisy Lenyai held that a statement published on 18 April 2026 through Jembe's Facebook account, "Louisa Official 2," falsely insinuated that Munetsi had been involved in fraudulent activities. The court also found that a video posted on 19 April 2026, in which Jembe addressed Munetsi, violated his constitutional right to dignity. According to the order, Jembe must remove the publications from Facebook and any other social media platforms under her control within 48 hours.

The court further directed her to erase all remaining digital traces of the defamatory content by 2 August 2026.

"The statement published by the respondent on her Facebook handle (Louisa Official 2) on 18 April 2026, in which she insinuates that the applicant was involved in a fraudulent act, is defamatory," Judge Lenyai ruled.

"The video footage published by the respondent... violates the applicant's dignity."

In addition to removing the content, the court ordered Jembe to publish an unconditional public apology on her Facebook account. The apology must take the form of a video retracting the defamatory allegations made on 18 and 19 April, regardless of whether the original posts had already been deleted. The ruling also ordered Jembe to pay R300,000 in legal costs on a party-and-party scale, including the costs of counsel.

Speaking after the judgment, Munetsi said he would seek further legal action if Jembe failed to comply with the court order. He said he intends to return to court to institute contempt of court proceedings should the respondent fail to remove the posts or publish the required apology within the stipulated time.

"If she does not comply with the judgment, we will approach the court for a contempt application and seek the appropriate enforcement measures," Munetsi said.

The ruling underscores the growing willingness of South African courts to hold social media users accountable for defamatory online content. Legal experts have increasingly warned that defamatory statements published on platforms such as Facebook, X and TikTok can expose individuals to substantial civil damages and court-ordered apologies, even where posts are later deleted. The judgment reinforces that freedom of expression does not extend to publishing false statements that unlawfully damage another person's reputation or dignity.

Moreboys Munetsi defamation case