Eastern Cape company director in court for tender fraud

Eastern Cape company director in court for tender fraud! The director of Liphundi Project (Pty) Ltd appeared in the East London Magistrate’s Court in the Eastern Cape on tender fraud and was granted bail.

Babalwa Afrika Ngwenze, 42, faces charges of fraud, forgery, and uttering.

The provincial spokesperson for the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (known as Hawks), Warrant-Officer Ndiphiwe Mhlakuvana, said the charges stem from tender fraud relating to Amatola Water.

Tender fraud

“The Development Section of Amatola Water reportedly advertised a tender application in 2020. It is alleged that the said tender was for hiring water tankers to supply water to various communities within the Chris Hani district. There were numerous requirements for a company to qualify for the tender, which included a license for a water tanker that must be possessed by the potential service provider and must be produced,” Mhlakuvana said.

It is alleged that on August 27, 2020, Ngwenze, through her company, misrepresented to defraud Amatola Water and submitted a fabricated vehicle registration certificate purporting to have been supplied by the appropriate licensing authorities from the Department of Transport, when it was not.

“The submission made the suspect made her a suitable service provider for the tender. She was awarded a tender to supply water to the aforementioned areas. Successively, services were rendered, then the accused ostensibly submitted invoices to Amatola for payment of which was paid to the business entity,” Mhlakuvana said.

During auditing, discrepancies were picked up and the matter was referred to the Specialised Investigation Unit (SIU), where later it was handed over to the Hawks for thorough investigation.

Investigations by the Hawks established that Amatola Water suffered a loss of more than R215,000.

Ngwenze made a brief appearance and was released on R1,000 bail.

The matter has been transferred to the East London Regional Court.

The case has been postponed until June 2.

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