The business community in Musina, Limpopo has welcomed the Special Tribunal’s ruling that profits made from the erection of a 40- kilometre fence along the Beitbridge borderline be paid back.
The SIU investigated the contract as part of the President’s proclamation for the investigation of COVID-19 related contracts.
According to the court ruling, the SIU had launched an investigation into the contract shortly after the fence was erected, as it had started falling apart.
The SIU then applied that the Tribunal orders that the contractor pays back over R20-million that had been pre-paid prior to the start of the work.
The Tribunal last week dismissed that application, ordering that the contractor only pays back profits made from that project.
In the scathing ruling, the Tribunal stated that corrective measures lie in holding officials who designed, approved and implemented the project accountable.
The SIU welcomes the Special Tribunal order stripping Caledon River Properties and ProfteamCC of profits earned from the R40.4 million contracts awarded by the Department of Public Works to erect the Beit Bridge border fence, as part of the Covid-19 emergency procurement in 2020. pic.twitter.com/78OB4KX60I
— Special Investigating Unit (SIU) (@RSASIU) March 8, 2022
Small business owners in Musina have welcomed the ruling, saying the local businesses did not benefit from the contract.
The Musina Business Chamber says the compromised state of the fence exposes local businesses to trans-border criminal syndicates.
The chairperson of the Forum, Samuel Rephunga, says they welcome the Special Tribunal’s decision and that the fence is not value for money.
“We are very satisfied. If they have to pay back the money that’s where we are supposed to go because the fence was not done properly, the fence is not worth the money. So, we truly rally behind that decision. If we were given an opportunity, we were going to do a better job because we know what is best for our town,” adds Ruphenga.
Magwa Construction and Profteam CC could not be reached for comment.
