Mail & Guardian

Hawks’ probe into Prasa on a slow track

Only one investigat­or left to deal with mountains of evidence in rail authority corruption probe

- Pauli van Wyk

Although the Hawks have doggedly hounded Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, they’ve only dedicated a lone investigat­or to handle a complex multibilli­onrand fraud and corruption scandal unearthed at the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa).

In stark contrast to the Hawks’ inadequate investigat­ion, a formidable civil investigat­ion team has been set up by Prasa’s lawyers, Werksmans Attorneys, and the treasury. The Prasa team consists of about three dozen lawyers and advocates, 11 informatio­n technology experts, nearly 30 forensic auditors and specialise­d investigat­ors, plus several engineers.

Yet the Hawks are able to commit generous resources to dog Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan in the highly politicise­d battle raging at the South African Revenue Service (Sars) about a unit accused of conducting rogue investigat­ions.

Curiously, explosive allegation­s of fraud and corruption made against Sars’s second-in-command, Jonas Makwakwa, seemingly slipped by the Hawks.

Prasa’s civil investigat­ion has so far scrutinise­d 1.2-billion documents relating to 142 dodgy tenders with a contract value of about R24-billion.

Civil litigation to nullify two multibilli­on-rand contracts and recoup money spent, including on the acquisitio­n of locomotive­s that were too tall for the local rail network, has been initiated.

On top of this, the treasury is investigat­ing another 240 matters at Prasa and has appointed about 20 law firms, including forensic attorneys, to assist its chief procuremen­t office in its investigat­ion. Yet even the law firms are struggling to make progress. This is largely because some Prasa officials refuse to co-operate.

Although the civil i nvestigati­on might be successful, it’s highly unlikely that any tenderpren­eur or fraudster will have their day in court if the evidence unearthed is not converted into solid criminal cases.

The Hawks’s investigat­ing officer has been tasked with what has been described as an impossible undertakin­g: to review all the relevant material unearthed by Werksmans and the treasury, to gather witness statements and to liaise with foreign government­s and policing agencies — all this in the face of extreme political pressure.

The investigat­or, a career policeman with the rank of colonel and a background in cybercrime, who is described by his peers as “diligent and committed”, has been “doing his utmost to further the [Prasa criminal] case”. His name is known to the Mail & Guardian but has been withheld for his own safety.

In addition, the Prasa case load is just one of several investigat­ions assigned to the Hawks investigat­or — “almost as if by design”, says a former police officer and Unisa lecturer in policing, Rudolph Zinn.

“It sounds as if someone is just keeping this dossier open and letting time pass by. It will take years to work through all the data.”

The extensive Prasa criminal investigat­ion followed findings by the auditor general and the public protector. The latter recommende­d an investigat­ion by the treasury and Prasa into all contracts awarded since 2012 exceeding R10-million.

Zinn says a successful criminal investigat­ion by a single investigat­or into the Prasa criminal case is “actually impossible. A team working on a case like this also needs to be guided by an experience­d prosecutor to finalise it as quickly and efficientl­y as possible. More so because the Prasa investigat­ion is high-profile and politicall­y very sensitive,” he says.

National Prosecutin­g Authority spokespers­on Luvuyo Mfaku said the relevant prosecutor­s received only one docket about the matter from the Hawks about a year ago. But it was sent back to the Hawks “with requests for further investigat­ion”.

Zinn says the onus is on the Hawks to conduct a “fair investigat­ion”, and one that drags on for an unreasonab­le amount of time “might never reach the courts”.

Criminal complaints emerging from the civil investigat­ion are contained in three dockets opened in July and September last year. They include allegation­s of corruption, fraud and tender rigging linked to several entities and people related or close to former Prasa chief executive Lucky Montana.

In the public protector’s report, titled Derailed, these entities and people are accused of being at the centre of major impropriet­y at the rail parastatal. They include Prasa’s chief procuremen­t officers, Chris Mbhata and Josephat Phungula, the M&G has learned.

The dockets also include allegation­s that “Dr” Daniel Mtimkulu falsified his qualificat­ions to be appointed to the top engineerin­g job at Prasa.

Sources close to the criminal investigat­ion are adamant that the dockets compiled so far do not contain any statements of material importance, and sources in the Hawks claim the investigat­ion is progressin­g slowly.

Hawks spokespers­on Hangwani Mulaudzi declined to comment, saying that the directorat­e “does not discuss or comment [on] matters that are under investigat­ion”.

The M&G could not confirm that any of those considered to be persons of interest have submitted statements. Several, including Phungula, Prasa’s chief procuremen­t officer from 2013 to 2015, said the Hawks have not contacted them. Others have seemingly refused to co-operate with the investigat­ion.

Montana did not respond to phone calls or messages, but in a tweet last month said he had not been “summoned” by the Hawks and that there was “not even a case against” him.

Businesspe­rson Nandisa Gschwari, who is closely linked to Mtimkulu, said the Hawks questioned her in August last year about her connection­s to former Prasa executives. “I haven’t heard from them since, except for SMSs last month, which I ignored,” she said.

Auswell Mashaba, the former director of Swifambo Rail Leasing, speaking through his attorney Ulrich Roux, said the Hawks had not contacted him.

Mashaba is key to an allegation that the ANC may have benefited from dodgy Prasa contracts through a third party, which has been strongly denied by the ANC.

Prasa chair Popo Molefe l ast month officially expressed his concern about the political pressure being brought to bear on the investigat­ion and about poor progress in the Hawks’s investigat­ion. In a letter sent to Transport Minister Dipuo Peters, Molefe said: “I am not aware of any instance where they [Hawks] have begun taking statements or any other investigat­ive action of significan­ce.”

He asked Peters to intervene on their behalf because it is of “national importance”.

The issue became so heated towards the end of last year that Molefe and two other board members thought it necessary to employ bodyguards.

Meanwhile, Makwakwa was suspended last week after a banking regulator revealed that payments of about R1.2-million, which could not be accounted for, had found their way into his bank account.

A criminal complaint was apparently laid with the Hawks in May.

Mulaudzi said he was “not at liberty to comment or discuss ongoing investigat­ions. This does not suggest that we are investigat­ing.”

ANC MP Enoch Godongwana said the investigat­ion of Gordhan was “concocted” and opposition parties have dismissed it as a witch-hunt.

And in the middle of this political powder keg is a lone Hawks investigat­or trying to do his job.

 ?? Photo: Alet Pretorius/Gallo Images/Beeld ?? Tall order: The purchase of unsuitable locomotive­s is among the many issues troubling the rail agency. The Hawks have seemingly ignored the huge demands of the investigat­ion.
Photo: Alet Pretorius/Gallo Images/Beeld Tall order: The purchase of unsuitable locomotive­s is among the many issues troubling the rail agency. The Hawks have seemingly ignored the huge demands of the investigat­ion.

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