Ex-CJ officials embroiled in tender row
Three top officials from the Office of the Chief Justice (OCJ) are accused of corruptly setting themselves up for a large slice of a R225m IT contract after they helped to strike the deal.
Former CFO Casper Coetzer; ex-spokesperson Nathi Mncube and former case management director Yvonne van Niekerk all resigned last month and served their last day on the job on 31 May.
The following day, they began new jobs as local partners to multinational media and technology organisation Thomson Reuters, which had been awarded the R225m, six-year CaseLines contract by the OCJ.
The Sunday Times reports that through the subcontract, they are set to earn 30% of the value of the deal, or at least R67.5m.
It is unclear what work they have to perform on the contract.
‘The OCJ can confirm that it was made aware of a subcontract between Thomson Reuters and the South African company in question (ZA Square Consulting),’ it said.
The OCJ declined to comment further, saying ‘it would not be appropriate to provide any additional information in this regard’.
Thomson Reuters, which is based in Canada, said ZA Square was subcontracted ‘on merit’ and is above board.
‘The government has robust procurement legislation and processes premised on Treasury Regulation 16A3 that the OCJ followed,’ said company spokesperson Dave Moran.
According to Companies and Intellectual Property Commission records, ZA Square Consulting was registered on 15 December and Thomson Reuters advertised for a local partner in January.
Speaking on behalf of the trio, Mncube denied allegations of irregularities.
‘We did not approve the Thomson Reuters main tender as we had no authority to do so,’ Mncube told MyBroadband.
Mncube added that public servants were not prohibited from owning private companies.
‘In terms of Regulation 18 of the Public Service Regulations, 2016, all strategic management services members are required to disclose their financial interests to their relevant head of department not later than 30 April of each year,’ Mncube said.
Article disclaimer: While we have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this article, it is not intended to provide final legal advice as facts and situations will differ from case to case, and therefore specific legal advice should be sought with a lawyer.
