Mpumalanga public works, road and transport MEC Steve Mabona has been cleared of allegations that he benefited from a fraudulent transaction, premier Ndaweni Mahlangu said on Thursday.
”After exhaustive consultations with the departmental officials and Mabona and after a thorough examination of the documents provided to the task team, no shred of evidence of any influence or involvement by Mabona in the awarding of such contracts could be found,” Mahlangu said.
Mahlangu appointed a task team last month to investigate reports that Mabona was involved in questionable dealings with a company known as Positioning Corporate Underwriters and Insurance Consultants (PCUIC,) owned by Walter Senoko.
This was after more than R6-million was transferred by Mabona’s department to PCUIC. It was later alleged that R1-million of that amount was transferred to Mabona personally. Mabona has confirmed he received the money, but claimed it was for unrelated personal transactions between him and Senoko -‒ the sale of a house and a car.
The report does not mention the R1-million, although it does say Mabona has been cleared of any wrongdoing.
The task team concluded that the R6-million contract was invalid, Mahlangu said.
”The government will go and retrieve its money. We will demand the money back from the person who got the money,” Mahlangu said.
Mabona said there was also no proof that any of the department’s officials received benefits from the awarding of the contracts.
The team was tasked to investigate:
whether the awarding of any contracts by Mabona’s department to Senoko’s company, or companies in which he had an interest, complied with the internal rules and procedures;
whether payments made to the any of his companies were for services rendered;
whether Mabona was unduly involved in, or influenced, the awarding of contracts; and
whether any person in the employ of the provincial government benefited from the awarding of contracts.
The findings concluded that Senoko had interest in the PCUIC and is linked further companies, Mofenyi Traders, Mofenyi Tourism and Bushi Investments which also benefited from contracts.
Senoko was also awarded the contracts through Hluxukani Construction, in which he had no direct interest.
However, it was found that these companies and close corporations had rendered services and it was these services for which they were paid.
The task team found that, had the attempt to secure another R9-million contract in favour of PCUIC succeeded, the internal rules and procedures on the Mpumalanga provincial government would have been seriously compromised.
Mahlangu said the National Prosecuting Authority had confirmed that they were not investigating Mabona. Both Senoko and Mabona’s head of department, William Mthombothi, were arrested by the Scorpions in connection with the R6-million contract earlier this month.
Following his arrest, Senoko has contradicted Mabona’s explanation why the R1-million was paid to Mabona. But it appears Mahlangu’s task team did not take this into account as it did not interview Senoko.
Mahlangu said the task team’s report, with its record of proceedings, would be referred to the Mpumalanga state law advisers and the labour relations unit in Mahlangu’s office, and disciplinary proceedings would ensure where internal procedures and treasury regulations had been contravened. – Sapa