The Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court in Mpumalanga has postponed the corruption, fraud and theft case against former State Security Minister Bongani Bongo and other suspects to the 4th of May 2021. This is to allow the state to conclude the docket analysis and transfer the case to the Regional Court.
Bongo is confident that he will be cleared of the corruption charges he faces in Mpumalanga.
Former State Security Minister Bongani Bongo and 11 others back in the dock. They’re facing fraud, corruption and theft charges amounting to over R74 million #SABCNews pic.twitter.com/ww6EkabnXg
— Tumelo Machogo ??® (@IamTumelo) March 4, 2021
Bongo and the co-accused appeared briefly before the Nelspruit Magistrate’s Court to face 69 charges including fraud, corruption and theft. The charges relate to the sale and purchase of farms for eMalahlani and Msukaligwa municipalities in 2011.
Bongo was a senior official at the Mpumalanga Human Settlements Department’s legal unit at the time.
It’s alleged that the owners of the farms were paid less than the amount government paid for the farms. It’s also alleged that some of the accused received car and cash kickbacks from some of the entities involved.
Bongo says the allegations are baseless. “These charges come from 11 years ago they are brought now and nothing has been said about the trial for the past 11 years. The NPA has not been ready to try this matter. By my conclusion it would be this is done for a political reason to drag my name in the mud of corruption and I want to repeat that I’m not corrupt and neither does one of my family is corrupt. I’ve proven in the Western Cape court, I’m going to prove in the court here that I’m not corrupt.”
Bongo says his previous job as State Security Minister could’ve been the motivation behind the charges levelled against him.
“I was the Minister of State Security in this country responsible for sensitive information. The forces of darkness think I may use the information that I have against them and they think they must drag my name (that) I’m corrupt when it’s they who are corrupt.”
A call has been made by the ANC’s National Executive Committee to members who face criminal charges to step aside. But, Bongo has a stern warning to the ANC NEC.
“To step aside is being discussed by the National Executive of the ANC and (to) this extent there are guidelines that are being discussed. I told (them). They are going to provinces for further discussions and they will be adopted and would engage with them, but we are warning against the guidelines against the backdrop of what happened in Cape Town. They have seen I got into the dock and the magistrate said on the face of the charge, there was no case.”
All the accused are each out on R10 000 bail and the case has been postponed to the 4th of May for analysis of the dockets.
Bribery charges
Last week Bongo was acquitted of bribery charges. This after the Western Cape High Court dismissed the bribery case against him.
Bongo was charged for allegedly trying to bribe Parliament’s Eskom Inquiry evidence leader, advocate Ntuthuzelo Vanara.
Former State Security Minister Bongani Bongo acquitted from bribery charges:
