S’bu Ndebele cited in bribery case

Former KwaZulu-Natal premier and national Transport Minister S’bu Ndebele was named as accused number one in a provisional indictment on multimillion corruption, fraud and money laundering presented to a Pretoria court on Monday. Ndebele was not in the Pretoria court on Monday, but according to Jacaranda News, Ndebele appeared in the KwaZulu-Natal Commercial Crimes Court on Tuesday and was granted bail of R10 000. Jacaranda News also tweeted that the NPA had confirmed that Ndebele was in court for fraud, money laundering, corruption & contravening the Public Finance Management Act. According to the court papers presented in the Pretoria court, Ndebele stands accused of “directly or indirectly” accepting or agreeing to take R10.26 million from Justine Sibusiso Ncube or companies related to him, for Ndebele’s own benefit. The indictment talks of contracts worth more than a billion.

Ncube, 48, is the husband of KZN’s Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC, Nomusa Dube. He appeared briefly with Mangisi George Mahlalela, 51, Zakhele Gilbert Thwala, 56, and Tebogo Mphuti, 45, in the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court. Four companies – Tasima, Mandate Strategy Roadmap and Delivery, Brand Partners and Sinosa Construction – are also charged in the matter. The men face charges ranging from fraud to corruption and money laundering. Ndebele is only mentioned in connection with corruption charges. At the time of the alleged crimes, Mahlalela was the director-general in the national Department of Transport, Thwala was a deputy director, and Mphuti was the former chief executive of Tasima. Ncube is a director in the other three companies, according to court papers.

The provisional indictment accuses the men of authorising contracts without following procedures, as well as laundering money through the companies, fraudulently paying for services and goods not received and giving gifts to incur favours. Hawks spokesman Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi refused to comment on Monday on whether Ndebele was being investigated by the Hawks. Ndebele’s telephone was not answered on Monday. He is high commissioner in Australia. On Monday International Relations spokesman Clayston Monyela declined to comment on whether the ministry was aware that Ndebele had been charged. “I do not think that question is relevant,” said Monyela. The indictment says Ndebele faces a charge that he acted “in a manner which amounted to illegal, dishonest, incomplete unauthorised or biased exercise, carrying out or performance of any powers, duties or functions arising out of a constitutional, statutory, contractual or any other legal obligation which amounts to the abuse of a position of authority, a breach of trust or the violation of a legal duty or set of rules designed to achieve an unjustified result that amounts to other unauthorised or improper inducement to do or not to do anything”.

The alternative charge was that he accepted the R10.26 million from accused Ncube and/or the companies accused, in return for “doing any act in relation to the exercise, carrying out or performance of his powers, duties or functions within the scope of his employment relationship”. The accused were released on bail of R10 000 each. Magistrate Nicca Setshogoe postponed the matter to July 20 for further investigation. Mahlalela, who also served in various capacities in the KZN government, is accused of failing to ensure the department maintained an appropriate procurement and provisioning system which was fair, transparent, competitive and cost effective. He is also accused of failing to prevent unauthorised, irregular and/or fruitless and wasteful expenditure and losses resulting from criminal conduct. He is accused of failing to prevent the Department of Transport from incurring irregular and unauthorised expenditure of R36 million.

This was because Thwala allegedly committed the department to a contract with Mandate Strategy Roadmap without the approval of the department’s bidding committee, or without following the prescribed procurement processes. He is accused of committing the department to a contract with a company co-owned by Ncube for R49 million in which the latter’s company would provide a “2010 war room” for the 2010 Fifa World Cup and the creation of transport solutions without the services being approved by the department.