Almost three months after being ordered by the Gauteng High Court (Pretoria) to cancel an ‘unlawful’ multibillion-rand contract with a Gupta-linked company, Transnet is dragging its heels, says a Sunday Times report. The court ordered Transnet to withdraw the R2.5bn IT data services contract from German multinational T-Systems, and instead award it to Gijima, a company owned by billionaire IT entrepreneur Robert Gumede which had scored higher in the tender process.

Now Gumede has sent Transnet a letter of demand through his lawyers. After being awarded the contract in March 2017, T-Systems ceded its contract to Zestilor, a company owned by Zeenat Osmany, the wife of Gupta associate Salim Essa. Gijima Holdings challenged Transnet’s board decision by complaining to Transnet’s procurement ombudsman, resulting in the National Treasury ruling that the contract was not in accordance with Transnet’s legal obligations under the Preferential Procurement Policy Framework Act.

Transnet then went to court to have the contract legally cancelled and in December Judge Raylene Keightley found the T-Systems contract ‘invalid and unlawful’ and ordered Transnet to award the tender to Gijima, but the order hasn’t been implemented.

Gijima’s lawyer, Nicqui Galaktiou, wrote a letter to Transnet’s lawyers, MNS Attorneys, recently demanding to know when Transnet would implement the court order. Galaktiou reportedly told the Sunday Times she had not heard from Transnet. ‘Our instructions are to take all steps necessary in the circumstances, including but not limited to an application for compliance with the court order,’ she said.

Transnet spokesperson Molatwane Likhethe said the High Court order was ‘not prescriptive on how and when the tender should be awarded to Gijima’. ‘Accordingly, a letter of regret was issued to T-Systems and the award of the tender to Gijima is under consideration,’ Likhethe said.

Full Sunday Times report (subscription needed)