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By SIFISO DLAMINI | 2024-11-15
ABOUT E15 million donated by the Republic of China (Taiwan) has gone down the drain as procurement of an emergency rescue truck went wrong due to alleged flouting of government procurement procedures.
The truck, which was purchased from Marce Fire Fighting Technology, a company based in Centurion, South Africain, 2021, has still not been delivered three years later despite being paid for in full.
Investigations by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) uncovered that the funds were deposited into a personal account of one of the company directors.
During an inspection in loco, the PAC only found some parts of the truck that were yet to be assembled.
Its head was found at a separate manufacturing company where it had been kept while waiting for full payment.
An emergency rescue truck, also known as a heavy rescue truck, is a type of emergency vehicle designed to deal with particularly severe incidents, such as fires and disasters, requiring a lot of personnel and equipment.
These vehicles must also accommodate large groups of people as well as the necessary tool to handle severe conditions.
The truck had been procured for the Eswatini National Fire Emergency and Rescue Services (ENFERS). It was not meant for firefighting, but to rescue people trapped during accidents, either in road traffic or collapsed buildings.
The delegation which conducted the inspection in loco on October 24, was led by PAC Deputy Chairman, Nhlambeni MP Manzi Zwane who was accompanied by members of the PAC and representatives of the ministries of housing, public works and transport.
During the PAC special meeting held yesterday, Zwane reported that on arrival at the company base, they met one of the directors who narrated that the delay in the delivery of the truck was due to an impasse he had with his partner as they did not see ey- to-eye.
He said the director informed them that after their fall out, his colleague whose account the funds were deposited into, fled to Australia with the money.
The director acknowledged the debt, but informed the delegation that there were no funds at the moment.
Promised
They were assured that the company had begun assembling the truck and promised to deliver it by the end of this month. Zwane further reported that the company asked for an extension of two months, meaning they would deliver the truck on January 31, 2025.
“As a committee, we resolved that since the festive season is fast approaching, the deadline should be March 31, 2025 so as to give them enough time,” he said.
One of the key resolutions made was that the company would submit, a written commitment and contract to ensure that they meet their obligation.
However, over two weeks later, there had been no commitment submitted which raised concerns among the committee members on whether the company would deliver or not.
Zwane said they insisted that the company must submit the commitment letter since the original contract had lapsed and it worried them that there was no communiqué to date as per the responses from the ministry officials.
PAC Clerk Arthur Mordaunt said the main issue was that there was no commitment in terms of contract which meant there was no guarantee that the company would deliver as they said they were continuing with the contract out of the goodness of their heart.
The PAC also questioned if proper procurement procedures were followed and how the funds were deposited in the director’s personal account as opposed to that of the company.
The committee members also revealed that the company was supplying other countries and provinces within South Africa. The company director informed the PAC that they were utilising the funds from other clients to service the contract since there were no available funds.
PAC Chairman MP Madala Mhlanga said he did not see any light at the end of the tunnel since the company was now robbing Peter to pay Paul. Mhlanga said in order to ensure that the funds were not lost; the ministry should engage the office of the attorney general to institute legal proceedings against the company since they acknowledged that the funds were paid.
He also repeatedly questioned if the ministry had not placed any orders or engaged the company on further procurement since the incident took place.
The committee also enquired if the entire E15 million was paid into the director’s personal account.
They also questioned if the truck would be standard since it was now being assembled because of fear to lose future government tenders as they had been engaged in the past.
The committee further insisted that the person responsible for authorising and depositing the funds in a personal account should repay the funds.
Payment
Meanwhile, Auditor General Timothy Matsebula said advance payment was the main problem that led to flouting of procurement procedures and loss of public funds.
“Upfront payment is high risk and the ministry needs to contact the company to get the necessary guarantee,” said Matsebula.
Central Transport Administration (CTA) General Transport Manager Mduduzi Lukhele confirmed that there was still no commitment or contract forwarded by the company. this was also confirmed by ENFERS Chief Firer Officer Luke Lushaba.
Procurement procedure was followed – PS
Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development Dr. Simon Zwane believes that procurement procedures were followed in the E15 million truck tender.
He said from a procurement perspective, when paying upfront there needed to be a bond from the bank the money was deposited into which he said was secured.
He noted though that the problem was that the ministry was lax in following up on the contract until the bond lapsed, giving an opportunity to the director to redirect the money into his personal account.
The PS said the only good thing was that the company acknowledged the contract despite the loss of the funds, which meant they had to account for same and honour the contract.
Enquired
The PAC members enquired if there was any proof that proper procurement procedure was followed.
Ministry of Housing and Urban Development Under Secretary Hlobsile Dlamini asked for some time to engage the officials in order to verify if procedure was followed as well as gather all the supporting documents. She committed to bring back the report with detailed responses to the committee on Monday.
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