The Democratic Alliance (DA) has called on transport minister Joe Maswanganyi to suspend the CEO of Airports Company South Africa (Acsa), Bongani Maseko, with immediate effect pending the outcome of disciplinary hearings.
This as documents leaked to the DA seem to show that Maseko had “irregularly” appointed two suppliers who did not qualify to provide services to state-owned enterprises (SOEs), according to a statement released by the party yesterday (Sunday).
The documents, which FTW Online has seen, show that Maseko allegedly authorised payments of up to R7 million to a company called Incentive Driven Marketing – from as far back as September 2016 – by bypassing formal tender procedures.
A memorandum – supposedly written by the legal counsel to the Acsa Group, Bonginkosi Mfusi – further indicated that the appointment of Ranamane Mokalane Attorneys (at a cost of R2.5 million) was irregular not only in terms of Acsa’s own policies but according to the Public Finance Management Act.
Mfusi stated in the memo that “the appointment of Ranamane attorneys by the Acsa CEO was irregular in terms of the Acsa Supply Chain Management Policy and the Acsa Supply Chain Management Procedure”. He added that they were not part of the approved Acsa panel of attorneys.
The DA’s shadow minister of transport, Manny de Freitas, told FTW Online that Paul Ranamane, of Ranamane Mokalane Attorneys did not qualify to practise as he had been struck off the roll of attorneys by the High Court in 2016 for “misappropriating” R5 million in trust funds from the Department of Public Works.