State response to challenge in ethekwini tender case

THE State was in the process of responding to representations submitted to it by one of the accused in the case against former ethekwini mayor Zandile Gumede and others in the Durban High Court.

This was according to National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Natasha Kara, who spoke outside court yesterday after the matter was adjourned to August 22 for a plea.

Gumede and 21 others are charged with racketeering, fraud and corruption relating to a R320-million waste contract.

According to the State, the accused are an array of ethekwini municipal officials (current and past), ward councillors, business people and their companies.

The State alleges that ethekwini officials, including the city manager and ex-mayor, circumvented the supply chain management (SCM) processes on a Durban Solid Waste (DSW) tender, for the benefit of identified service providers, worth more than R300m.

The representations that Kara refers to had been submitted to the State by the previous appearance for pre-trial, and these challenge the charges against the accused.

Inside court, all legal representatives were ready to proceed except advocate PM Ntuli, representing accused Bagcinile Cynthia Nzuza, who indicated that she would need two weeks to go over the case documentation she had received.

“I took over the brief a month ago, representations have been handed to the State … Due to the volume, I will need two weeks to go through them,” she told Judge Sharmaine Balton.

Previously, advocate Carl van der Merwe withdrew his services for Bongani Dlomo, Khoboso Dlomo and their company, Omphile Thabang Projects, as there were no funds to pay him. In court yesterday, Mlamli Magigaba presented himself on the record as the private attorney of accused 15, 16 and 17 – being the Dlomos and their company.

Because he was not ready to proceed as he had only accepted the case’s brief two days ago, he asked for the court’s indulgence as he would need time to go over all documents.

Magigaba then asked for until August 22, after the matter was stood down, and further dates for the trial were to be set in the court’s next session.

MBATHA African News Agency (ANA) | BONGANI FORMER ethekwini mayor Zandile Gumede arrived all smiles yesterday at the Durban High Court, where dates for the matter to sit next year were set to start in March.