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The running track of the Galeshewe Stadium after it was completed. (Photo: Charles Mokoena)
The National Lottery Commission paid 10 million rand for the development of a running track in Kimberley, but no work was done.
First published by Ground.
The head of a nonprofit company paid by the National Lottery Commission 10 million rand to build a running track in Kimberley says she was pressured to outsource to an IT company, which did not do the job. .
The NLC awarded a grant of R15 million through a non-profit company Vigilance tower on 7 March 2018. Of this amount, R10 million went to the track at the Galeshewe Stadium in Kimberley. The grant was signed by Phillemon Letwaba, who receives a payment “leave”, on February 26, 2018.
The remaining R 5 million went to Inqaba to carry out a series of youth development initiatives at the national level, including camps for 400 youth in each of South Africa’s nine provinces. That part of the project was completed and all funds accounted for.
Castle director Khoza restored saying Ground that it had been “pressured” to pay the 10 million rand to a Pretoria IT company, Unicus Solu (IT) ons, which was responsible for hiring the contractors and supervising the construction of the road. But, based on Unicus’ website, the company does not have any record of participation in infrastructure projects.
The company says on its site that it “offers a wide range of solutions focused on the IT spectrum that address challenges across the breadth and depth of the enterprise.” Unicus is owned by Jabu Sibanda, who had initially represented himself as an employee of the NLC, Khoza said.
In a statement to the Hawks, Khoza said she had received a call in early 2018 from Sibanda, which was unknown to her, claiming he was the provincial manager of the NLC in Mpumalanga.
“He informed me that the following people: (CEO) Managing Director – Charlotte Mampane, (COO) Director of Operations – Phillemon Letwaba – from NLC Headquarters in Johannesburg had sent him to approach me to help me as NPO develop tracks for the North West and North Cape provinces, ”Khoza said.
“He also said that I was highly recommended for the work I had done in development and training.”
Three days after the NLC paid 15 million rand to Inqaba Yokulinda, Khoza was introduced a bill of 10 million rand by Unicus. She said she was “instructed” by Terrence Magogodela, the Athletics South Africa (ASA) financial manager, who was the “program director” for the stadium project, to pay for it.
This was confirmed in an affidavit by a colleague, Billy Ntelebovu, who was present at a meeting where the payment instruction was issued.
He said that Magogodela had answered for Sibanda and had been told that “the director of operations [Letwaba] I had asked why the money had not yet been transferred to Unicus, ”Khoza said in his statement. As a result, she paid for it and requested documentation to protect her own organization “because I didn’t feel comfortable.”
After six months, Khoza felt even more uncomfortable.
“Our NPO is focused on development and we have worked hard for our reputation,” Khoza said. Ground. “We were under pressure from the Kimberley Township (the stadium owners) and community members who knew the Lottery had given the money and asked why the track was not being built.”
He said that he had contacted the NLC when he realized there was a problem. Sibanda, he said, had told him that the money “had run out.” In July 2018, he visited NLC’s Pretoria offices and met with Letwaba and Tsietsi Maselwa, the organization’s legal director, to complain about Unicus again.
“They told me they would withdraw the money. In the same month, I canceled the contract with Mr. Sibanda asking him to return all 10 million rand as it was earmarked for development. “
Despite a written commitment to return the money, Sibanda did not do so, Khoza said. “I regret that I did not open a case before finally reporting it. I was scared, they warned me that my life was in danger, ”Khoza said.
The commission’s response was to give Inqaba another R4 278,000 on September 25, 2019 to complete a project that it had already paid for. Inqaba hired a new contractor, using mainly local labor, to lay the tracks. They also renovated and painted the stadium, renovated locker rooms, and fixed broken and leaking taps and toilets, although this was not part of the funded project.
The work began in October 2019, but was delayed by heavy rains and was only completed in February 2020. It cost just over half of the R10 million that the NLC had already paid for the running track alone.
Khoza says his life turned upside down after he started asking questions about the lost 10 million rand. She says she started receiving threats and felt “intimidated” after being visited by “fake policemen” who asked her questions about the project.
His office at Ratanda in Gauteng was broken into and files, laptops and memory cards were stolen. However, the thieves ignored other valuable items “such as cell phones, printers and computers,” he said. His email account was hacked and the password was changed, and he was no longer able to access emails related to the project.
“I was really scared and I took my children to stay with my mother because I was very concerned for their safety,” Khoza said. “I also moved to another office and moved, staying in different places. It was a very scary moment, ”he said.
In response to detailed questions from GroundSibanda said: “I have taken note of Ms. Buyisiwe Khoza’s statements. I am fully cooperating with the relevant authorities who are investigating the matter. Ms. Khoza is being very opportunistic and selective in her accusations. I intend to allow the investigation to conclude before commenting further. “
ASA CFO Magogodela denied ordering Khoza to pay Unicus. “My opinion was simply requested as to whether Unicus, represented by Sibanda, was a trustworthy entity. Since Unicus had run a previous project for ASA without any problems, I had no reason to doubt its good faith. “
He said that Sibanda had asked him to help him “with the compilation of the funding application, not on behalf of ASA, but simply as a person who understood the funding requirements.”
ASA spokesman Sifiso Cele said ASA president Aleck Skhosana had refused to sign a prepared letter endorsing Unicus for the project, as the request “did not conform to our relevant policies.” He said: “… the SIU together with the Hawks are conducting investigations into this matter and…[have] visited the offices from the NLC to gather more information about various projects and presumably the previous project as well. In light of the above developments, we do not wish to prejudice their investigations … ASA would prefer to cooperate … with their investigators rather than air our views in the media. “
The NLC did not respond to detailed questions twice emailed to spokesperson Ndivhuho Mafela. Receipts were received showing that the e-mailed questions had been read by Tsietsi Maselwa, head of legal affairs for the NLC, and Gugulethu Yako, legal director of the Commission.
In response to questions about whether the Hawks were investigating the Galeshewe Stadium matter, Hawks spokesman Colonel Katlego Mogale said: “I sent your inquiry to the Northern Cape and they don’t have an investigation of this nature. I am currently waiting for the national or other provinces to respond ”. DM
