Charged in R27m corruption case, Pule Mabe to step aside from ANC NEC

Abdullah Mohamed Ismail, who together with former ANC spokesperson and National Executive Committee (NEC) member Pule Mabe, his wife, Mmatlhekelo Elsie Mabe, and four others face corruption charges in a R27-million waste collection tender scandal, asked the court to release him on bail so he could watch singer Cindy Lauper perform in the US.

Their bail hearing was heard on Wednesday in the Johannesburg Specialised Commercial Crimes Court at the Palm Ridge Magistrates’ Court. They were released on R30,000 bail each.

Their bail conditions included being forbidden to contact State witnesses, surrendering their passports and not travelling abroad. Ismail’s request for an amendment to his bail application to allow him to travel abroad will be heard in November.

Four of the accused are former senior officials at the Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (GDARD) — former heads of department Thandeka Mbassa and Matilda Gasela; former chief financial officer Ismail; and Loyiso Mkwana, a former chief director. Two of the accused, Mmatlhekelo Elsie Mabe and Tinyiko Mahuntsi, are employees of KGP Media Holdings.

Also accused are two entities, KGP (trading as Enviro Mobi) and Star Mass Direct (trading as Kariki Media Holdings).

The accused turned themselves in on Wednesday to the Hawks. They face 29 charges of fraud, theft and contravening the Public Finance Management Act and the Prevention of Organised Crime Act.

The charges stem from a R27-million tender Pule Mabe’s company, Enviro Mobi, scored from the GDARD in March 2017. The tender was for the supply of 200 three-wheeled waste collection vehicles known as tuk-tuks for waste pickers in Ekurhuleni.

The State contends that while Mabe disclosed his links to Enviro Mobi when he was appointed as an MP in 2016, the company covered it up when it bid for the tender.

After the bail hearing, Mabe told journalists he would step aside from the ANC NEC and would present himself to the party’s Integrity Commission. He said he had declined an opportunity to return to Parliament because of the case.

On Wednesday, ANC spokesperson Mothusi Shupinyane Ka Ndaba said the party would issue an official statement after Mabe was formally charged in court.

Mabe represented the ANC in the National Assembly from 2014 to 2017. He was the party’s national spokesperson from 6 February 2018 to 28 January 2023.

Mabe denies allegations

In his affidavit read into the court record outlining why he should be granted bail, Mabe stated: “I’m married to co-accused Mmatlhekelo Elsie. I’m currently a member of the ANC NEC. In line with the charges against me, I may consider stepping down from my duties as NEC which is consistent with the resolutions of the ANC.”

He denied the allegations levelled against him, saying he intended to plead not guilty.

“I’m also convinced that should I stand trial I will be found not guilty,” reads his affidavit.

Gauteng National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane said the charges stemmed from an investigation by the Special Investigating Unit and the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation into the R27-million tender.

She said Enviro Mobi was unlawfully awarded the tender and the GDARD paid more than R6-million in storage costs for the tuk-tuks.

On 10 February 2017, GDARD advertised a tender for the integration and formalisation of small, medium and micro waste enterprises in Gauteng into the mainstream waste management economy.

The department received submissions from 10 companies, including Enviro Mobi, of which Mabe was a director from September 2010 to August 2014. He was also a signatory on the business account of KGP Media Holdings, trading as Enviro Mobi, said Mjonondwane.

“The State further alleges that Mkwana, Mbassa and Ismail, facilitated the appointment of Enviro Mobi, represented by Pule Mabe. The State further alleges that, at the time of the tender award, these companies lacked the necessary expertise and furthermore that Enviro Mobi allegedly indicated that it had no affiliation with any governmental official and/or member of Parliament.

“From March 2017, Enviro Mobi allegedly submitted invoices worth over R26-million, which were not accompanied by any supporting documentation detailing services rendered or work done and despite this, payments were allegedly authorised by Mkwana and Ismail. These invoices allegedly included payments for tuk-tuks that were paid without any proof of delivery,” said Mjonondwane.

The Auditor-General, Mjonondwane added, found that GDARD misrepresented its annual financial statements for the year ending 31 March 2018, indicating that payments worth more than R27-million made by GDARD during the 2017/2018 financial year were made in advance but were incorrectly recorded in the GDARD accounting records as expenditure.

The case against Mabe and his co-accused was postponed until 25 March.

Other ANC members on trial

Other high-ranking ANC members facing charges include former sports, arts, and culture minister Zizi Kodwa and former National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula.

Kodwa and his co-accused, Jehan Mackay, face corruption charges related to allegations that Kodwa received direct payments and luxury accommodation worth R1.6-million during his time as ANC national spokesperson from 2015 to 2016. In late July, he resigned as an MP after he was sworn in following the 29 May elections despite facing criminal charges.

Kodwa and Mackay have denied the charges and applied to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to have them dropped. The DPP’s decision will be voiced in court on Thursday, 24 October.

Read more: ‘Case against Zizi Kodwa is ‘palpably weak’, argues lawyer in calling for charges to be dropped’

Mapisa-Nqakula, out on R50,000 bail, faces 12 charges of corruption and one of money laundering. The charges relate to her tenure as minister of defence between 2016 and 2019, when she allegedly solicited and received about R4.5-million from Nombasa Ntsondwa-Ndhlovu, whose company was a service provider to the department.

Mapisa-Nqakula has denied all the allegations.

She was back in the Pretoria High Court on Wednesday and the matter was postponed to 5 December. DM