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Whistle-blower says he was targeted by superiors

A former top city official who blew the whistle on irregularities in the eThekwini Municipality, claims his role in exposing corruption led to him being targeted by his superiors and eventually fired. In an affidavit which forms part of the annexures to the Manase report, the man – whose name is known to the Daily News – revealed how senior officials bypassed proper procurement policies and how he had been left jobless for exposing it. The whistle-blower claimed he had discovered “several irregularities” within the unit where he had worked, one month into his job. He had started in October 2008. He said the next month he discovered that an IT company had been overpaid by R2 million and ordered it be reversed.

But that allegedly angered his superiors and a witch-hunt against him began, he claimed. He was summoned by his superior and allegedly threatened, “that I would lose my job if I pursued my investigations”. He claimed a manager had flouted processes in awarding contracts valued at millions of rand, and in one instance an official ordered payment of more than R1m be made to a blacklisted company. The company had been blacklisted after an audit revealed how a consultant – who reported directly to the whistle-blower’s boss – had awarded contracts worth millions to a company owned by the consultant’s daughter. He took his concerns to the Ombudsman offices in September 2009.

A month later his bosses laid complaints of insubordination and a disciplinary hearing was instituted. He was later dismissed. He said his dismissal was a cover-up of “gross corruption”. After his dismissal, the whistle-blower petitioned the then mayor Obed Mlaba and the regional secretary of the ANC in eThekwini, as well as the MEC for local government. The letter to them is also part of the annexures. “I have been told that I could have avoided the whole situation if I kept quiet on the massive corruption.” It was not made clear who said that to him. He also claimed that city officials had enjoyed overseas trips paid for by one of the companies awarded a contract by the city.

Source: www.iol.co.za

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Whistle-blower says he was targeted by superiors

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