It’s one Nell of a provincial copier scandal

The Hawks are investigating fraud and corruption charges against two Limpopo government entities over the awarding of multimillion-rand tenders to well-connected ANC member Jacques Nell. DA provincial leader Desiree van der Walt filed the charges in Polokwane on Wednesday against the Department of Roads and Transport and the Capricorn District Municipality. The Star has seen the documents Van der Walt handed over to the Hawks. The documents seemed to indicate the department awarded a R14 million contract to Xerox Data Master, a company owned by Nell, an ANC benefactor. The printing company was contracted to lease its photocopier machines to the department for three years.

The department opted to award the contract to Nell’s company despite a rival company, Minolta, offering to provide the same services for R4m. Simultaneously, the Capricorn District Municipality also awarded a R7.3m tender to Nell’s company to provide similar services. Minolta had offered to provide the same services for R2.5m. Limpopo police spokesman Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi confirmed the two cases. “They will be forwarded to the Commercial Crime Unit of the Hawks to investigate the allegations.” Nell is a prominent businessman who recently vowed, at an ANC breakfast meeting, to support embattled Premier Cassel Mathale after the province was placed under administration.

Recently, Van der Walt read out an e-mail in the provincial legislature purportedly written by Nell to the provincial ANC, advising the party not to award tenders to certain companies. The Star has seen a copy of the e-mail, sent to the e-mail address that the party uses. In the e-mail, Nell listed companies he said worked with the DA and the media to discredit the ruling party. “As we can’t afford to fund the enemy, we must start with a mass boikott (sic) against these companies,” the e-mail read. Nell refused to comment on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the ANC has distanced itself from the e-mail saga.

“That is not the view of the ANC. It is the view of an individual,” provincial party spokesman Makonde Mathivha said. The Roads and Transport department said its supply chain management policies were watertight. It is one of the five departments that were placed under national administration, and the cabinet has said it will conduct a forensic investigation. Moffat Senyatsi, spokesman for the Capricorn District Municipality, said: “Xerox Data Master was a suitable bidder in that they had shown that they could deliver on the specifications of the bid and it should be understood that price is not the only factor in the procurement process criteria.”