Mpumalanga Land Deal: Former Official Faces Scrutiny Over R400,000 Car Deposit

• Mpumalanga, former Human Settlement's HOD, said his R400,000 deposit for his car in 2011 was from the sale of his house
• David Dube reportedly said he would provide the deed of sale to the court to prove the money wasn't sourced unlawfully
• Dube's charges, linked to the infamous R74 million rand Mpumalanga land deal, were withdrawn by the Nelspruit Commercial Crimes Court

Zingisa Chirwa is an experienced Briefly News journalist based in Johannesburg, South Africa, who has covered Mpumalanga court stories and current affairs on the radio for over 15 years.

Mpumalanga’s former head of Human Settlements, David Dube, said the R400,000 he used as a deposit for a Mercedes Benz AMG in 2011 was money from selling his home.

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Dube to clear up car funding

Dube told SowetanLIVE that he would provide the deed of sale to the Nelspruit Commercial Crimes Court in Mpumalanga.

Dube commented after his court appearance on 2 May 2024, when the magistrate withdrew the charges against him for contravening the Public Finance Management Act. The magistrate, however, indicated that the former department head would need to clarify where he sourced the R400,000 car deposit and prove it wasn’t from illicit deals.

Dube was in court alongside former state security minister Bongani Bongo, Bongo’s ex-wife Sandile Nkosi, Patrick Donald Chirwa, Herrington Dlamini, Robert Burwise, Blessing Mduduzi Singwane, Elmon Lawrence Mdaka, Sibongile Mercy Mdaka, Vusi Willem Magagula and Bongani Louis Henry Sibiya.

According to The Citizen, the 12, including four companies, were charged with 69 charges of theft, fraud, and money laundering for allegedly selling two Mpumalanga farms to the government at inflated prices. The land deals reportedly amounted to R74 million.

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Mpumalanga's R74 million land deal file for withdrawal of charges

The accused reportedly applied to have the case struck off the role with the Nelspruit Commercial Crimes Court in early 2024.

Chirwa, Burwise, Dlamini, and Nsingwane were reportedly cleared; however, the rest of the accused will know their fate when the magistrate continues to deliver his judgement on 10 May 2024.

Bongani Bongo found not guilty of bribery

Briefly News reported that former State Security Minister Bongani Bongo was cleared of charges for allegedly attempting to derail a parliamentary inquiry into Eskom.

On 26 February 2024, the Western Cape High Court found that there wasn't sufficient evidence to prove that Bongo offered a bribe to the Public Enterprises Portfolio committee's evidence leader, Ntuthuselo Vanara.

Bongo had incessantly denied the allegations against him.

Source: Briefly News