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President of the State Capture Commission, Vice President of the Supreme Court Raymond Zondo.
- The chief director of the local government branch of the Department of Local Government and Housing in the Free State, Kaizer Maxatshwa, says that he and some colleagues were “wrongfully accused” in connection with the R1 billion housing project.
- Maxatshwa accused the former director of the Free State Department of Human Settlements, Mpho Mokoena, of contradicting himself.
- Meanwhile, Vice President of the Supreme Court Raymond Zondo says he is concerned that the provincial government has paid millions of rand, but that the money ended up in the pockets of some people.
One of the Free State officials who was found responsible in connection with the province’s R1 billion housing plan, which has been described as irregular and fraudulent, has asked the Zondo commission to help him and his fellow defendants. To finalize your case.
Six officials were charged after a disciplinary hearing and the case is now before the Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration Commission (CCMA).
The former chief director of the local government branch of the Department of Local Government and Housing in the Free State, Kaizer Maxatshwa, said they were “wrongly accused.”
He told the commission that on Wednesday, while trying to do justice, they lost one of their colleagues, and that he also suffered from depression and “pressures to be purged by those who have the power to do so in our lives.”
Maxatshwa said he couldn’t get a job.
The Free State was meant to build thousands of low-cost houses between 2010 and 2011, but they were never built.
When it did not spend the allocated money, the national department threatened to transfer part of the budget to “better-performing provinces.”
READ | Zondo: Why has no one been charged or arrested in the R1bn Free State housing scheme?
The commission heard that the Free State had spent more than 500 million rand without doing any work.
The department was also reported to have made payments to contractors and suppliers without any written agreement or proof that houses had been built.
Former department head Mpho Mokoena alleged that former MEC Mosebenzi Zwane had devised a plan to prevent the national department from accepting the money.
But on Wednesday, Maxatshwa accused Mokoena of contradicting herself in connection with the project.
“How [for] Mr. Mokoena, if you look at the transcript, what you said in your affidavit this week that was presented to the commission is [a] total contradiction to what he said during the disciplinary hearing.
“He totally denied responsibility for the system while the documents were there. He approved the implementation of the system [and] the memo. He also instructed and participated in a war room, “he said.
Following his testimony, Zondo expressed some concerns.
“It is quite disturbing that a lot of money that had been set aside for the construction of houses for people seems to have ended up in the hands of various suppliers and maybe contractors, more than 500 million I think Mr. [Nthimotse] Mokhesi and yet no houses were built regarding that particular assignment [in] 2010 [and] 2011 and the money should have benefited ordinary people.
“They should have gotten houses, but they didn’t get any and yet the government had set aside a huge amount of money.
“It is very worrying because there is a government to ensure that people receive the services they need.”
Zondo said he had heard other testimonies about millions of rand that were spent but that ordinary people did not benefit.
In recent months, the commission has heard extensive evidence related to the R255 million asbestos audit project in the Free State.
READ | Free State’s asbestos project is flawed process with no evidence of competitive bidding, Zondo commission hears
During the test, it was revealed that the province could easily have paid around R20 million to do the job.
But instead, a joint venture was paid millions of rand, just to outsource the work.
Zondo had also heard evidence about the Vrede dairy farm project, which was intended to benefit black farmers.
“The people who were supposed to be beneficial didn’t benefit there either. I heard evidence that they never got anything and yet millions and millions were paid and the actual people who were supposed to benefit got nothing. It’s very worrying.”
He said this did not mean that the province was the worst because the commission had not heard evidence from others.
“My own thinking is that if you go around the provinces you will find many projects where the money that was supposed to benefit ordinary people ends up in the pockets of some people and ordinary people get nothing. It is very worrying.
“As I listen to all this evidence, here is something that worries me very much because, the people who are supposed to be served end up without receiving benefits and still [it is] their money, because it is taxpayers’ money, is paid to other people. “
The hearing will continue on Friday.
