Hawks Arrest 8 Nelson Mandela Bay Ex-employees for Bribery Connected to Covid-19 Toilet Tender

• The Hawks coordinated the arrest of eight people connected to Covid-19 tender fraud in Nelson Mandela Bay on Thursday, 29 September
• The group will appear in the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Gqeberha on Friday, 30 September, on charges of fraud and money laundering
• One prominent arrest included Nelson Mandela Bay city manager Noxolo Ngwazi, who signed off on the R24 million tender

NELSON MANDELA BAY - The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) arrested eight people in Nelson Mandela Bay on Thursday, 29 September, in connection with a Covid-19 toilet tender.

Among those arrested are the former human settlements director, ANC regional secretary, and ex-DA councilors. In addition to the metro's city manager, a businessman and his wife were also arrested.

The group is expected to appear in the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court in Gqeberha on Friday, 30 September. They will face charges of fraud, money laundering, and infringement of the Municipal Finance Management Act, TimeLIVE reported.

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Authorities captured a big fish when they arrested Nelson Mandela Bay city manager, Noxolo Nqwazi, for signing off on a R24-million tender for toilets in informal settlements.

Hawks spokesperson Captain Yolisa Mgolodela said the tender was irregularly awarded and didn't follow supply chain procedures. In addition, the investigation uncovered that other individuals were involved in money laundering.

According to Daily Maverick, Mgolodela added the R400K of the tender money was paid to a sub-contractor but was traced to three former DA councilors who voted to remove their party from the Nelson Madela bay government in 2018.

Mogolodela broke down how the money ended up with the ex-DA councilors. She explained that the R400k paid to the contractor was transferred to another company which then sent the money to a private businessperson. Then it landed in the possession of the ANC regional secretary, who passed it on to the councilors.

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South African react to the arrest in Nelson Mandela Bay

Most South Africans congratulated the Hawks on a job well done. Others speculated that the bribe was from the ANC. Below are some reactions:

@malebo_tshidi said:

"Viva Hawks! they are doing a good thing"

@ynotamil added:

"Hawks, you doing a great job. You can get 5 . Go to the SA's Cabinet of Ministers. Keep it up. "

@brownman_64911 claimed:

"These Hawks are USELESS... WHY #PHALAPHALAGATE #cr17bankstatements Concealments?"

Coalition parties oust ANC mayor of Nelson Mandela Bay in motion of no confidence, DA mayor takes over

In other news, Briefly News reported that a motion of no confidence on Wednesday, 21 September, has resulted in the removal of the ANC executive mayor in Nelson Mandela Bay.

Eugene Johnson was elected mayor in November 2021 by a one-vote margin and has been subject to several attempts to remove her since then.

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According to News24, the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) and African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) lobbied other parties to endorse a motion of no confidence in Johnson in December 2021 to no avail.

Source: Briefly News