THE ‘TOILET 10’ IN COURT
Magwangqana, Gaga ‘amend’ affidavits after magistrate warns about lying under oath The National Prosecuting Authority wants the fraud, corruption and money-laundering case against 10 senior government and business people implicated in the Amathole district municipality toilet scandal to be heard in the high court because the alleged crimes are of the utmost gravity.
And if convicted, the NPA believes the high court could sentence the accused to lengthy jail terms.
This was revealed by senior state prosecutor, advocate Marius Stander, when the 10 were formally charged with tender fraud, corruption, money laundering and contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act in the East London magistrate’s court on Friday.
The 10, former ADM municipal manager Chris Magwangqana, former CFO Nkosinathi Soga, former director of engineering services Mpumelelo Shezi, former ADM director of corporate services and now finance MEC Mlungisi Mvoko’s chief of staff Lulama Taleni, former Cogta municipal infrastructure support agency (Misa) acting CEO Ongama Mahlawe, current Misa CEO Ntandazo Vimba, Siyenza Group bosses Bongani Mpeluza and Vuyani Gaga, their CFO Busisiwe Kwinana-Boadi, and head of operations Lovemore Khativu, were nabbed on Thursday on suspicion that they were the masterminds behind the looting of more than R600m from ADM coffers.
Blue Nightingale Trading 397, trading as Siyenza, is accused number 11 in the docket, while Siyenza Prospectors and Siyenza Eastern Cape are listed as accused 12 and 13 respectively.
Nine of them were later released on R40,000 bail each, while Soga was granted R10,000 bail. They will all be back in court on February 5 2020.
The state did not oppose bail, with magistrate Annamarie Elliot ordering the accused to hand in their passports to the investigating officer (IO) by December 6. Should they need to travel overseas, they would have to motivate to the IO.
Failure to hand in travel documents could result in the accused being rearrested and their bail revoked.
The packed East London courtroom had to be first cleared before the 10 made their appearance before Elliot. Some people gathered outside the court to catch a glimpse of the accused.
More than 20 law enforcement agencies’ officials, including those from the Hawks, were among those who filled he courtroom.
When proceedings began by midday, some of the accused were calm, with some posing for pictures. Others tried to hide their faces, or were seen consulting with their legal representatives before the charges were officially brought against them.
Stander told Elliot that the 10 would be charged under schedule 5 offences as their matter was very serious.
The group had submitted court affidavits in which they all claimed not to have any previous convictions or pending cases.
However, when Elliot informed them that if it was found they had lied in the sworn statements, their bail would be revoked, Magwangqana and Gaga, through their attorneys, later asked the court to allow them to “amend” their affidavits.
It could not be independently verified whether the two had pending criminal cases.
Stander told Elliot that investigations were nearly complete and that at their next court appearance, a possible trial date would be set.
The money they allegedly stole was meant for the construction of ventilated pit toilets in several villages under ADM jurisdiction.
However, it later transpired that procurement policies were not adequately followed when the tender was awarded to the controversial Siyenza Group in 2015.
The tender had been marred by controversy from the word go, with Siyenza’s work characterised by poor workmanship. Some toilets sank into the ground and some material still lay idle in the villages after being dumped when the shenanigans around Siyenza first emerged.
In an interview after the postponement, NPA regional spokesperson Luxolo Tyali said the state had a watertight case against the 10.
“This is a serious case that needs to be heard by a high court judge because such a court can impose far stiffer sentences that the regional court or lower courts.
“The fact that we have enrolled the case in court means that we are confident that we have enough evidence to secure a conviction.
“It is the state’s case that the accused concluded a prior agreement to appoint Siyenza as the sole service provider in order to misappropriate funds earmarked for the sanitation project by the ADM,” Tyali said.
“The poorest of society within the ADM have been prejudiced, robbed of basic services, and their basic human rights infringed by individuals and state officials who were in positions of power and trust, but instead plundered the state coffers for their personal benefit,” Tyali added.
Tyali also revealed that the state’s move to attach assets belonging to the 10, and which they believe were proceeds of crime, was in motion.
However he refused to divulge what sort of assets they were looking for, saying that could jeopardise the mission.
In August 2018, it was reported that the Asset Forfeiture Unit had already obtained a forfeiture order against Mpeluza’s R18m Lanseria house, believed to have been acquired using money from the sanitation project’s funds, with Tyali saying more assets were on their radar.