Nelson Mandela Bay Deputy Mayor Gary van Niekerk set to stand trial for cyberfraud

Six months have passed since Nelson Mandela Bay Deputy Mayor Gary van Niekerk made his last court appearance for alleged fraud and flouting municipal finance laws. As his return to court crept closer, cracks began to show in his relationships with his fellow city officials.

Van Niekerk is scheduled to return to the dock of the Gqeberha Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Wednesday, 10 September, where he is set to stand trial on charges of cyberfraud and contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act.

The charges date back to 2022 when Van Niekerk allegedly racked up legal bills amounting to more than R570,000 when he was not authorised to do so. 

The State alleges that he approved legal services from law firm Boqwana Burns Incorporated when it was not listed as one of the municipality's preferred service providers, and appointed the firm as the Speaker of Council during a period when he had vacated the position.

He is further accused of soliciting legal opinion from another law firm, namely McWilliams & Elliott. While the firm was listed as a preferred service provider, Van Niekerk’s request for a legal opinion had been denied by then acting city manager Selwyn Thys. 

The legal bills for Boqwana Burns Incorporated and McWilliams & Elliott came to R551,586 and R23,393, respectively. In an internal report, adopted by the council in November 2024, Van Niekerk was found guilty of misrepresenting himself to the attorneys as a councillor and Speaker of Council, even though his seat had been declared vacant.

Read more: Hawks to charge Nelson Mandela Bay deputy mayor with cyber fraud linked to R551,000 legal fees

Van Niekerk last appeared before court in March, where arrangements were made for a pretrial conference and a trial date was scheduled for September 10.

On previous appearances, Van Niekerk’s legal team repeatedly indicated that they would make representations regarding the State’s case against the accused. However, at his last court date these representations were still outstanding.

Before postponing the matter to September, Magistrate Khuselwa Majali said the pretrial conference would be the last opportunity to make representations before trial commences.

The charges against Van Niekerk came to light in November 2024, and he was summoned to appear before court for the first time on December 12. He has been out on warning ever since.

Later that same day, the Nelson Mandela Bay Council voted to suspend Van Niekerk as deputy mayor. That decision was later reversed after Zolile Williams, MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, was asked to intervene.

Last month, The Herald reported that during a council meeting, Williams’ decision on Van Niekerk’s suspension was noted once again. However, when Van Niekerk wanted to respond on the topic, his efforts were snubbed by Speaker of Council Eugene Johnson, who said the matter was noted and closed for discussion.

Van Niekerk subsequently stormed out of the meeting as he and Johnson rebuked each other. The incident seemingly confirmed reports of growing tension between the deputy mayor and Speaker of Council.

Later in the day, Van Niekerk sent another response. He said the invitation was sent to his office and presented to the International Relations Subcommittee on 6 May, where it was approved for attendance.

He added that Lobishe initially did not support the trip, preferring it to be part of a planned calendar of international visits. But he claimed that the mayor was unaware that the subcommittee had already approved the trip.

According to Van Niekerk, the matter was clarified with Lobishe and resubmitted for discussion at a later subcommittee meeting. Van Niekerk also said he had spoken directly with the mayor, who gave her approval.

He added that, given the mayor’s other priorities, it was natural “that her signature was not appended immediately”. Van Niekerk concluded: “While I appreciate the interest of the media on me, my work and life, I must say that there is nothing criminal about this trip.”

Municipal spokesperson Sithembiso Soyaya referred all questions back to Van Niekerk. DM