EFF leader Julius Malema has dismissed allegations that his party was involved in tender manipulation in the City of Tshwane.
The allegations surfaced in WhatsApp messages read before the Madlanga commission of inquiry.
The exchanges — between police sergeant Fannie Nkosi, Tshwane CFO Gareth Mnisi and former Tshwane metro police department (TMPD) deputy chief Umashi Dhlamini —purportedly linked the EFF and ActionSA to tender bids in the city.
In one of the exchanges, Nkosi sent Dhlamini a message containing the names of two security companies.
Dhlamini allegedly responded with a list of seven additional security companies, followed by a text that read: “Afternoon Captain. I trust you are well and your family. The above-mentioned [companies] is from red berets. Please check with Mfethu [Mnisi] if it’s the same with his from CIC (a reference to Julius Malema) to verify its authenticity.”
Nkosi then forwarded the message to Mnisi.
A few days later, Mnisi replied: “Good morning. I had a meeting with ActionSA and EFF yesterday. Telling me to submit [5 company names] is an insult and didn’t sit well with me.”
In an interview with Radio 702, Malema said the party does not use its members on the mayoral committee to direct tenders towards specific companies linked to the organisation.
He denied the EFF had submitted a list of preferred companies for consideration.
“We don’t do that,” Malema stated. “The EFF doesn’t get involved in tenders. The EFF doesn’t give anyone a list and say, ‘do the following’.”
He also distanced the party from the individuals named in the inquiry, noting Mnisi, Dhlamini and Nkosi had no formal links to the EFF.
“They are all employed by the government in those municipalities. We never employed any CFO, deputy chief of police or Nkosi to the extent that we could give them a list and claim it as an EFF list. That is a complete lie.”
Malema said he was still waiting for the accusers to produce the physical list for him to verify, emphasising that such conversations never took place. He also expressed his support for a full investigation into the matter.
“If there is any wrongdoing by the CFO, investigate him. He is not an EFF member; we have no hold over him. If there is any action to be taken, they should take it.”
TimesLIVE
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.