KZN Transport Department Faces Investigation Over Corruption and R672 Million Tender Issues
- KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli has highlighted serious allegations of corruption and procurement irregularities in the KZN transport department
- Some of the allegations include irregularities in a transport tender worth R672 million and variation orders over R146 million
- Ntuli suspended the Head of Department, Siboniso Mbhele, and called in the Special Investigating Unit
High levels of corruption and procurement irregularities have been uncovered within the KwaZulu-Natal transport department. Several senior officials, including the Head of Department, Siboniso Mbhele, are under investigation.
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Contracts worth R672 million
Despite several warnings from the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Thabani Nkosi, it is alleged that Mbhele proceeded with the irregular contract award. Nkosi reportedly warned Mbhele about inadequate budgets and expired bid validity periods.
A tender (ZNB 2278/24T) for subsidised public passenger transport services valued at R672.5 million is at the centre of the investigation. The tender process was allegedly marred by errors that should have raised immediate concerns. According to the City Press, the bid evaluation committee said it registered four submissions, but only one bid was formally registered when looking at the departmental records.
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The department reportedly awarded the contract without a formal extension after the bid validity period had expired, which may be a violation of procurement laws. The CFO allegedly declined to extend the expired bid validity, stating that it had lapsed. The HOD, Mbhele, reportedly ignored this warning and proceeded with the award.
Irregularities in variation orders
Other irregularities in variation orders were also flagged, showing serious violations of the National Treasury regulations. It is alleged that the permitted 15% cap for the nonconstruction contracts by R146 million was exceeded and was never preapproved by the bid adjudication committee (BAC). Despite these violations, the head of the department approved the variations without asking for supporting documents for the claims.
Another case involved a contract for traffic management systems, which allegedly expired due to internal approval delays. This led to the termination of essential services, including camera networks, speed monitoring and fine recovery systems. Mbhele allegedly backdated approvals for the contract extensions after they had expired.
Source: Twitter
Ntuli suspends the HOD
KwaZulu-Natal Premier, Thamsanqa Ntuli, stated that these allegations came from various sources in and outside government. Premier Ntuli allegedly placed Mbhele on precautionary suspension pending the outcome of the investigation.
Ntuli also instructed Simanga Ngubo, acting HOD, to withdraw all financial delegations of authority and take control of all payments to service providers. Payments to all implicated service providers will also be withheld where evidence is presented. The matter has been forwarded to the Special Investigating Unit, and Ntuli allegedly instructed MEC for transport, Siboniso Duma, to formally report the matters to law enforcement agencies.
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- Briefly News also reported that Gauteng Liquor Board officials were charged and dismissed following investigations into allegations of rampant corruption.
- ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula weighed in on how corruption was affecting the image of the African National Congress.
- President Cyril Ramaphosa weighed in on the establishment of an independent anti-corruption body.
Source: Briefly News
