Legalbrief | your legal news hub Sunday 26 September 2021

AG's report reveals dossier of corruption

The Auditor-General's report into the state of Limpopo's affairs is a damning indictment of the province's political leadership, according to weekend media reports.

City Press says the AG's general report on the outcome of the Limpopo government audit for the 2010/11 financial year provides more detail on the apocalyptic picture painted by Finance Minister last week when he described a province nearly R3bn in the red. The scale of the administration rescue that confronts the national government in Premier Cassel Mathale's province is spelled out in the audit's overview, in which the Limpopo Education, Health And Public Works Departments feature as the key transgressors. State procurement in Limpopo was riddled with corruption and irregularities, and contracts to state officials. In the Education Department alone, supporting documents could not be provided to auditors for more than 600 contracts worth more than R150m that had been awarded to state officials. The reports show that contracts were awarded to bidders 'who are known to have committed a corrupt or fraudulent act in competing for the contract'. It did not say who these bidders were. Full City Press report

How the Limpopo government ensured companies linked to Mathale and suspended ANC Youth League leader benefited is revealed in a report in The Sunday Independent. It claims to have been told by three senior civil servants and two ANC leaders that they were ordered by the Premier's office at the last two provincial cabinet lekgotla meetings to prioritise infrastructure spending or divert funds from operational costs if need be. The departments were required to furnish the Premier's office with annual infrastructure development plans containing a list of tenders to be issued, areas, and their value, they added. The report claims the bulk of the multi-million rand tenders were eventually awarded to companies owned by well-connected businessmen, including On-point Engineers and SGL Engineering Projects - previously or currently owned by Malema and his Ratanang Family Trust. Payment schedules were also changed from 30 days to twice a week, which is against National Treasury regulations, in order to fast-track cash-flow to certain companies. Full report in The Sunday Independent (subscription needed)

The Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) has launched an investigation into a R220m Limpopo tender contract which appears to have been awarded to a joint venture, under-qualified for the job, which has links to the ANC, says a report in The Sunday Independent. It notes the awarding of a 51km pipeline contract to Tlong Re Yeng Trading & Projects in conjunction with Base Major Construction has been at the centre of litigation since November. Two losing bidders are fighting for the award to be reviewed. The report says one of the partners in the joint venture is related to Selby Manthata, a business associate of Limpopo Premier and ANC provincial chairman Cassel Mathale. Full report in The Sunday Independent (subscription needed)

Opposition parties have called for similar interventions in other provinces, says a Beeld report. DA MP James Lorimer said North West should be next in line. 'This province is totally dysfunctional.' The Eastern Cape and Free State should also be included, Lorimer said. Treasury spokesperson Bulelwa Boqwana said a task team has already been deployed to the Eastern Cape for 'technical support'. It is still too early to do a thorough evaluation of other provinces, she said. Full Beeld report