SIU to probe two more defence department contracts
• President Cyril Ramaphosa has authorized the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to investigate two more defence department contracts.
• The probe is aimed at examining allegations of serious maladministration and financial mismanagement linked to two contracts.
• The contracts involve inventory verification, continuous asset verification, and the supply, installation, and commissioning of an asset management system.
• The SIU will also examine whether the payments for these contracts adhered to national treasury guidelines and if the payments were irregular, fruitless, and wasteful expenditures or financial losses for the department or the state.
• The probe will also hone in on department employees to establish if there was unlawful or improper conduct of the department.
• The investigation also revealed that the Department of Defence spent over R250 million Rands over two contracts to acquire software licenses, despite the department having an internal IT department capable of fulfilling this function.
• President Ramaphosa has signed four new proclamations authorising the SIU to investigate allegations of maladministration and corruption in interest rate swap agreements at Airports Company of South Africa, two contracts in the Gauteng Department of Sport, Arts, Culture, and Recreation; procurement of security services and more.
