SIU to investigate UIF payments, Ethekwini Municipality and Gauteng Enterprise Propeller
President Cyril Ramaphosa has signed three proclamations authorizing the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to investigate allegations of corruption and maladministration in Gauteng Enterprise Propeller, Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) and eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, and to recover any losses suffered by the State.
The proclamations authorize the SIU to unleash all its legislative powers to subpoena bank statement and cellphone records, search and seize evidence, and interrogate witnesses under oath in a quest to hold those responsible to account for their actions.
The SIU will use Proclamation R7 of 2021 to investigate the allegations of corruption and maladministration in the affairs of Gauteng Enterprise Propeller, an agency of the Gauteng Provincial Government. The SIU investigation will focus on the procurement or contracting of goods and payments made in relation to tender number GEP02/MRK- Township Entrepreneur Awards, which took place during 2017. The SIU will also investigate the project management services for the Pitching Booster Initiative that took place in Sedibeng in 2018.
The investigation will cover transactions that took place between 1 January 2017 and 1 April 2021, and transactions that either took place before January 2017 or after 1 April 2021 but relevant to, connected with same persons, entities or contracts being investigated.
The SIU will also investigate any unlawful or improper conduct by employees of the Agency, suppliers and any other person or entity in relation to the above-mentioned transactions.
Proclamation R8 of 2021 authorizes the SIU to investigate allegations of corruption and maladministration in the affairs of the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF). The investigation will focus squarely on the payments of COVID-19 Temporary Employee/Employer Relief Scheme (TERS) benefits to people who were not entitled to receive such payments or submitted false, irregular, invalid or defective application to the UIF, including the causes of such maladministration. The investigation will look at payments that date back to 1 March 2020 and 1 April 2021 or that took place after 01 April but relevant to, connected with or involve the same people, entities or contracts being investigated.
The SIU investigated TERS payments under secondment agreement with the Department of Labour, which had since expired. The investigation uncovered a number of irregularities in the TERS payments, which prompted the corruption busting Unit to apply for a proclamation. The SIU will now use all its legislative powers to get to the bottom of TERS payments and hold those responsible to account.
The third and final proclamation signed by President Ramapahosa on 1 April is Proclamation R9 of 2021, which focuses attention on the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality based in Kwazulu-Natal Province. The investigation will look into the maladministration in the affairs of the Municipality in respect of the alienation by or on behalf of the Municipality of immovable property for the provision of housing through the Municipality’s Human Settlements Infill Housing Programme, which alienation was contrary to manuals, policies or practices of the Municipality.
The investigation will also focus on the transfer or sale of vacant properties by developers appointed by the Municipality for purpose of the Municipality’s Human Settlements Infill Housing Programme in breach of the developers’ contractual obligations, and contrary to the objectives of the Municipality’s housing programme.
Furthermore, the SIU will investigate all payments made by the Municipality in respect of the allegations stipulated above in a manner that is not fair, competitive, transparent, equitable or cost-effective. The investigations will focus on transactions that took between 12 October 2012 and 1 April 2021 or prior to October 2012 and after 1 April but relevant to, connected with people, entities or contracts that are being investigated.
Fraud and corruption allegations may be reported via the following platforms: siu@whistleblowing.co.za / Hotline: 0800 037 774
Enquiries:
Mr Kaizer Kganyago
Special Investigating Unit
012 843 0048
082 306 8888
kkganyago@siu.org.za
