The FF Plus learnt with shock of the numerous serious allegations of misconduct and fraud that came to light during a recent Tshwane Metro Council meeting.
The Financial Disciplinary Board tabled a report in the Metro Council’s meeting on 9 November which lists 33 items relating to forensic investigations where disciplinary and legal actions are recommended.
Some of the items have been dragging on for years. This highlights the urgency of addressing issues of financial misconduct and malpractices in the Tshwane Metro as soon as possible.
One of the matters that stand out is the appointment of PEU Capital Partners (Pty) Ltd for supplying smart electricity meters to the Metro. It has since come to light that the company and its directors are under investigation by The Hawks.
PEU Capital Partners is accused of, among other things, making false representations to the Metro Council. The investigation revealed that the Metro Council has suffered financial losses of approximately R3 billion.
The report recommends that legal action should urgently be taken against the company with the aim of recovering the losses from it.
Several other matters also came to light, exposing officials’ financial mismanagement resulting in losses of R119 600, R58 200, R240 980 and R99 000, respectively. It is recommended that steps be taken against the officials in question.
In yet another case, legal action is recommended against a former city manager and the former chairperson of the Executive Procurement Committee for awarding a tender to a supplier for rendering services to the Roads and Transport Department worth R15 million. According to the report, those services were apparently never rendered.
It is, furthermore, recommended that disciplinary steps be taken against the project manager who oversaw the construction of a sewage line and two pump stations in the Kudube extensions for financial irregularities amounting to nearly R5 million.
The FF Plus will keep a very close eye on the process of prosecuting and holding the accused accountable. It is imperative to ensure that persons who are guilty of criminal acts are prosecuted and that the losses are recovered from them.
This report makes the root cause of the Metro’s dire financial situation abundantly clear, and the FF Plus will do everything in its power to repair the damage and prevent it from happening again.
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