Minister Dean Macpherson requests SIU to investigate lease agreements
13 September 2024
Minister Macpherson requests SIU to motivate for Presidential Proclamation to investigate lease agreements with top 10 highest-paid landlords & emergency day-to-day maintenance of facilities
In line with a commitment made during a press conference in September, the Minister of Public Works & Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson, has this week through his director-general Sifiso Mdakane requested the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) Head Advocate Andy Mothibi to motivate for Presidential Proclamations to investigate allegations of mismanagement and irregular payments made concerning lease contracts entered with private landlords as well as payment irregularities found in relation to emergency day-to-day maintenance of facilities.
A report by the Auditor General has revealed several instances of suspected mismanagement with private sector lease agreements at the Department of Public Works & Infrastructure (DPWI) that has resulted in recurring overpayments, which is why the Minister has requested the investigation by the SIU, specifically in relation to the 10 highest paid landlords for the 2021/22 and 2022/23 financial years. The second investigation into emergency day-to-day maintenance of facilities has been requested after the Department’s Anti-Corruption and Fraud Awareness Unit received a number of corruption and fraud allegations, including inflated and fraudulent supplier invoices, multiple calls logged for the same service, incorrect classification as an emergency when the request is normal, and payment of services not rendered.
“Since I was appointed as Minister of Public Works & Infrastructure two months ago, I vowed to bring an end to the era of corruption and wasteful expenditure within the department by taking serious actions to investigate any allegations and recuperate any wasted taxpayer money. The requests to the SIU are in line with this commitment to bring clean governance and ensure that public money is spent to the benefit of South Africans, not a select few criminals” Minister Macpherson said.