Suspended Buffalo City Metro city manager Andile Fani’s woes are far from over after the council this week resolved to add more charges against him – relating to four dodgy multi-million rand tenders.
The additional charges were tabled before council on Wednesday at a closed session where a damning report compiled by Advocate RG Buchanan, SC, was tabled.
Although the report highlighted a number of officials as having acted inappropriately, Buchanan singled out Fani and the metro’s software development coordinator Tembela Siswana as the only officials to face charges.
While Fani is set to face charges linked to some contracts, Siswana will only face charges linked to an IT contract awarded when she was acting as IT manager.
This will add to Fani’s problems after other charges were laid against him in March over R450-million irregular expenditure by the metro.
Buchanan’s report followed a forensic investigation by the National Treasury which probed contracts BCM has with various service providers.
The controversial contracts were listed as:
lContract between BCM, the South African Cities Network (Cities Network) and the Eastern Cape Socio-Economic Consultative Council;
lAnti-virus contract awarded to Simo Solutions;
lE-procurement contract awarded to Empire Praxis JV; and
lDebt management contract awarded to Lugogwana Comtech CC.
Following the report, BCM sought legal opinion to find out if any criminal charges should be laid against those implicated and whether the contracts could be terminated.
Buchanan wrote in his report that BCM did not comply with the municipality’s supply chain management policy in contracting Cities Network.
In reaction, Fani told the Saturday Dispatch yesterday that the Cities Network matter was not a new charge.
“I have it in the old charges. I don’t know (what) the new charges mean and I have not received anything from them. They keep adding charges because even with the current disciplinary it is a hurdle they can’t get over.
“I have been suspended and it has been nine months now and if I was really guilty this case would have been finished by now, but they keep adding charges and talking about that flimsy National Treasury report.”
The report stated that various services had been rendered and the city had received benefits from the services – however the appointment was found to have been “unlawful”.
The appointment of the government-owned entity cost BCM an estimated R4.5-million in unrecoverable value-added taxes (VAT) as Cities Network is not registered as a VAT vendor.
“The concern with regard to VAT arises as a consequence of the direct appointment by Cities Network of other independent service providers.
“On any reading of the applicable legislation such appointment was inappropriate and almost certainly unlawful,” the report stated.
On Wednesday the council adopted that additional disciplinary charges be brought against Fani for his role in the conclusion of the contract with Cities Network “contrary to the provisions of Section 217 of the Constitution”.
Powers have been given to acting city manager Nceba Ncunyana to set aside any contracts with independent service providers to the extent they had not been fully implemented.
Ncunyana was also delegated to report the alleged Municipal Finance Management Act contraventions to the South African Police Service (SAPS).
On the Lugogwana debt management contract, Buchanan found that the tender, advertised in 2012, was cancelled for reasons which were not “entirely clear” and then re-advertised in 2013.
Although Lugogwana had been one of the initial bidders in the “cancelled” process, the company reportedly hiked its prices from R5.4-million to R9-million by the time the tenders were evaluated and adjudicated upon.
The multi-million rand E-procurement contract meant for the supply, implementation, support and maintenance of an electronic procurement system was shamed in the report as being “somewhat chaotic”.
The forensic report found that BCM paid R12.6-million “for a product in which only one module is up and running”.
In 2014 the company’s contract was cancelled and the metro’s demands for repayment were fruitless.
It was further recommended that disciplinary proceedings be instituted against Fani and Siswana for failing to take action to recover losses suffered by BCM upon cancellation of the contract with Simo Solutions – meant to provide IT support and training in 2013 but which failed to install the IT system “for various reasons” despite being paid an undisclosed amount.
Contacted for comment Siswana said: “No one has said anything to be me. Let me wait until they charge me before I can comment.”
A senior ANC councillor who spoke to the Dispatch on condition of anonymity said they had decided to go after Fani and Siswana as they had been directly implicated in the Buchanan report. — mamelag@dispatch.co.za
Fani’s woes deepen
The additional charges were tabled before council on Wednesday at a closed session where a damning report compiled by Advocate RG Buchanan, SC, was tabled.
Although the report highlighted a number of officials as having acted inappropriately, Buchanan singled out Fani and the metro’s software development coordinator Tembela Siswana as the only officials to face charges.
While Fani is set to face charges linked to some contracts, Siswana will only face charges linked to an IT contract awarded when she was acting as IT manager.
This will add to Fani’s problems after other charges were laid against him in March over R450-million irregular expenditure by the metro.
Buchanan’s report followed a forensic investigation by the National Treasury which probed contracts BCM has with various service providers.
The controversial contracts were listed as:
lContract between BCM, the South African Cities Network (Cities Network) and the Eastern Cape Socio-Economic Consultative Council;
lAnti-virus contract awarded to Simo Solutions;
lE-procurement contract awarded to Empire Praxis JV; and
lDebt management contract awarded to Lugogwana Comtech CC.
Following the report, BCM sought legal opinion to find out if any criminal charges should be laid against those implicated and whether the contracts could be terminated.
Buchanan wrote in his report that BCM did not comply with the municipality’s supply chain management policy in contracting Cities Network.
In reaction, Fani told the Saturday Dispatch yesterday that the Cities Network matter was not a new charge.
“I have it in the old charges. I don’t know (what) the new charges mean and I have not received anything from them. They keep adding charges because even with the current disciplinary it is a hurdle they can’t get over.
“I have been suspended and it has been nine months now and if I was really guilty this case would have been finished by now, but they keep adding charges and talking about that flimsy National Treasury report.”
The report stated that various services had been rendered and the city had received benefits from the services – however the appointment was found to have been “unlawful”.
The appointment of the government-owned entity cost BCM an estimated R4.5-million in unrecoverable value-added taxes (VAT) as Cities Network is not registered as a VAT vendor.
“The concern with regard to VAT arises as a consequence of the direct appointment by Cities Network of other independent service providers.
“On any reading of the applicable legislation such appointment was inappropriate and almost certainly unlawful,” the report stated.
On Wednesday the council adopted that additional disciplinary charges be brought against Fani for his role in the conclusion of the contract with Cities Network “contrary to the provisions of Section 217 of the Constitution”.
Powers have been given to acting city manager Nceba Ncunyana to set aside any contracts with independent service providers to the extent they had not been fully implemented.
Ncunyana was also delegated to report the alleged Municipal Finance Management Act contraventions to the South African Police Service (SAPS).
On the Lugogwana debt management contract, Buchanan found that the tender, advertised in 2012, was cancelled for reasons which were not “entirely clear” and then re-advertised in 2013.
Although Lugogwana had been one of the initial bidders in the “cancelled” process, the company reportedly hiked its prices from R5.4-million to R9-million by the time the tenders were evaluated and adjudicated upon.
The multi-million rand E-procurement contract meant for the supply, implementation, support and maintenance of an electronic procurement system was shamed in the report as being “somewhat chaotic”.
The forensic report found that BCM paid R12.6-million “for a product in which only one module is up and running”.
In 2014 the company’s contract was cancelled and the metro’s demands for repayment were fruitless.
It was further recommended that disciplinary proceedings be instituted against Fani and Siswana for failing to take action to recover losses suffered by BCM upon cancellation of the contract with Simo Solutions – meant to provide IT support and training in 2013 but which failed to install the IT system “for various reasons” despite being paid an undisclosed amount.
Contacted for comment Siswana said: “No one has said anything to be me. Let me wait until they charge me before I can comment.”
A senior ANC councillor who spoke to the Dispatch on condition of anonymity said they had decided to go after Fani and Siswana as they had been directly implicated in the Buchanan report. — mamelag@dispatch.co.za
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