Former SAPS employee's ties to 'Cat' Matlala's company under scrutiny

A former SAPS employee, who was involved in awarding the R360 million health services contract to Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala, an accused of attempted murder, now works for the Medicare24 Contract Tshwane District company.

This was disclosed by SAPS Head of Supply Chain Management, Molefe Fani, when testifying at the parliamentary inquiry probing allegations made by KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.

This is after EFF MP Leigh-Ann Mathys asked about Fani's relationship with one of the Bid Adjudication Committee (BAC) members who joined the Medicare24 Contract company.

Fani said he has no relationship with the former employee.

“I knew her as a colleague and an employee at human resources. That is how far I have known her,” he said.

ANC Chief Whip Mdumiseni Ntuli said it appeared the employee was involved in “javelin throwing” – a process that produced a certain outcome on a contract, and disappeared from the SAPS and became part of the company that acquired the tender.

Asked if the action of the former employee was a sophisticated level of corruption, Fani said it appeared from a layman’s perspective to be questionable in terms of a person resigning while involved in awarding the tender and later working for the winning bidder.

“It is a red flag. It will require being probed, and we need to get to the bottom of that and make sure that if there is malpractice, that move is dealt with accordingly,” he said.

Ntuli challenged Fani’s assertion that the action by the former employee, from a layman’s perspective, was logical, that “this was javelin and sophisticated act of corruption” as the resignation followed the awarding of the tender.

“Is it justified to conclude that we have one example, there may be others not yet confirmed, there were people who engaged in the process with criminal intent”? asked Ntuli.

Fani responded that the assertion by Ntuli, “it appears correct.”

The inquiry heard that the audit on the contract, which was at the insistence of suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, found that the company had a franchise agreement with another company, with whom it shared the same business address.

The franchise agreement was not signed by the franchisee and could not be relied on at the time of the bidding.

The audit also found that the tender was awarded without conducting due diligence despite reports implicating Matlala in the R2 billion Tembisa Hospital looting spree.

However, Fani said there was nothing material to stop the awarding of the R360 million health risk management contract.

This was despite National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola being contacted by the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) while the tender was being adjudicated around May 2024, warning that there was a company linked to Matlala that was bidding for the contract.

IDAC had informed Masemola that Matlala’s company did not have a tax clearance certificate, had been blacklisted, and was involved in the Tembisa Hospital R2 billion looting spree.

Fani, who chairs the BAC, said he did not know of any concerns raised by IDAC, and none of the committee members made declarations with the contract.

“As I said earlier, I had no knowledge of Vusimuzi Matlala. I may have heard in the news that there are issues at Tembisa (hospital), but for me personally and probably for the members of the committee, for us to link him at that time to Tembisa did not happen,” he said.

He stated that neither Matlala nor his company was restricted from doing business when they awarded the tender.

Meanwhile, the MK Party wants National Director of Public Prosecutions Shamila Batohi to provide information in connection with the decision whether to prosecute forensic investigator Paul O’Sullivan.

The party’s MP, Sibonelo Nomvalo, wrote to Chief Evidence Leader, Advocate Norman Arendse, requesting that he get Batohi to furnish documentation on the matter as she had promised to do so.

“The information will greatly assist members of this committee in understanding the broader context of the allegations before us and in ensuring that our work remains grounded in factual, verifiable detail,” he wrote.

Committee Chairperson, Soviet Lekganyane, said MPs should copy him when they make requests to Arendse so that the committee could follow matters.

“It will impact the work we do as a committee. If there is a grey area that needs to be clarified, you (MPs) are welcome to do so because we probe allegations that have been made. If the information is not forthcoming, we have a right to do a follow-up,” Lekganyane.

Cedrick Nkabinde, Mchunu’s chief of staff, told the inquiry that two criminal dockets were opened using a report he sent to former minister Bheki Cele while he was at IPID.

One was by a former Gauteng Hawks boss, General Mokotedi, for treason, and another implicating Robert ,McBride, O’Sullivan and now Independent Directorate Against Corruption chief investigator Matthew Sesoko.

“Up until now, it is gathering dust within the National Prosecuting Authority. There is nothing happening, but they were arrested subsequently and were waiting for a racketeering certificate through my report.”

The inquiry will have a public hearing with SAPS CFO Puleng Dimpane and Deputy Commissioner Tebello Mosikili on Tuesday. They will conduct a public hearing with Matlala at Kgosi Mampuru Maximum Prison on Wednesday, Thursday, and  Friday.

mayibongwe.maqhina@inl.co.za