Zandile Gumede trial: Witness under fire for failing to raise protocol concerns

A State witness should have informed former city manager Sipho Nzuza of her concerns regarding protocol violations.

This is according to the defence in the R320 million Durban Solid Waste (DSW) tender corruption case involving former eThekwini Municipality mayor, Zandile Gumede, at the Durban High Court on Tuesday.

Twenty-two people, including contractors who collected waste in Durban, face numerous charges, including money laundering, racketeering, fraud, corruption, and contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act and the Municipal Systems Act relating to the tender.

The witness, who cannot be named as per a court order, testified that she had concerns about processes not being followed before the issuing of letters of award (LOA) to service providers who were going to collect waste in the city from January 2018. 

Since the contracts of individuals performing the work were set to expire on December 31, 2017, the Solid Waste Unit stated that it was imperative to hire experienced service providers to collect waste.

The witness was a senior boss at the tenders and contracts unit in 2017. She told the court that when the former deputy head of Supply Chain Management (SCM), Sandile Ngcobo, came to her office on December 28, 2017, to request that she issue LOAs so that Nzuza could sign them, she raised concerns about a breach of protocol. 

She also stated that she had sent an email to her supervisors, including the chairperson of the Bid Adjudication Committee (BAC) and the Executive Acquisitions Committee (EAC), regarding a conflicting decision. 

She stated that, on December 19, 2017, the BAC had approved quotations for the service providers and mentioned that the EAC had deferred the decision.

However, the court learned that the BAC's decision taken on December 19 had not gone to the EAC for consideration on December 21, 2017; in fact, what went to the EAC for consideration was a BAC decision taken on November 27, 2017.

She said after the BAC approves an item, the city manager can sign for the item, without it going to the EAC.

She agreed with the defence that the EAC was not a statutory committee; it was established by Nzuza to advise him when making decisions, adding that Nzuza had a final say as the city manager. 

The witness said that as Ngcobo was one of her immediate supervisors, she refused his request to issue the LOAs on December 28. 

“I wanted the process to be followed. I wanted this (December 19 BAC decision) to go to the EAC,” she said. 

She said the EAC and BAC chairpersons had to discuss the conflicting decisions. 

Counsel for Ngcobo, advocate Jimmy Howse SC, read the affidavit that the witness wrote while she was interviewed by an investigator. 

She said because of her unwillingness to issue the letters, Ngcobo called Nzuza and put him on the loudspeaker.

In her affidavit, she said Nzuza told Ngcobo that he was waiting for the letters and that Ngcobo would bring them to his house. The witness confirmed this. 

“He was giving him his residential code,” she added. 

Howse put it to the witness that his client said the only concern the witness raised was the conflicting decisions.

He also put it to her that when Ngcobo called Nzuza, he had made him aware that he was on the loudspeaker and that he was with the witness. 

He said Ngcobo did this so that the witness could hear the order about issuing letters from the horse's mouth.

He asked the witness why she did not tell Nzuza about her concerns. 

“I was listening to the conversation. He was not addressing me, he was talking to Ngcobo,” she replied. 

She said she did not speak because this was a conversation between two senior managers.

“I’m going to put it to you that you were well within your right and duty bound to say why the letters should not be issued,” Howse said.

The witness said that was Howse’s view, she would not disagree.

The trial continues on Thursday. 

nomonde.zondi@inl.co.za