Nelson Mandela Bay councillors want names of officials involved in R35m streetlight tender scandal

Officials implicated in fraud allegations relating to a R35-million streetlight tender scandal continued working inside the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality for more than a year after the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) issued referrals for criminal and civil action against them.

Many remain in their posts today.

On Friday, during a closed-door special council meeting at which the SIU tabled its findings on the controversial tenders, political parties warned that failing to act against — and name — those allegedly involved risked further looting of municipal funds.

Nelson Mandela Bay Mayor Babalwa Lobishe, however, said she was satisfied with the report and that disclosing the individuals’ names at this stage would jeopardise ongoing processes.

According to sources inside the meeting, the SIU report, presented by advocate Zolile Kwayimani, was very similar to the report tabled before Parliament’s Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Committee in March.

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Kwayimani told Parliament that referrals for criminal and civil action had been issued against 21 municipal officials and 20 contractors, while recommendations were made to blacklist nine service providers and their directors.

The SIU investigation stems from a whistleblower report submitted by former Defenders of the People councillor Tukela Zumani, who now leads the Mayibuye Civic Movement.

Zumani’s complaint flagged alleged irregularities in streetlight tenders approved by the metro on 10 November 2020, triggering the probe into one of the municipality’s most contentious procurement scandals.

The SIU was contacted for comment on what the next steps are and why the names of implicated individuals were not disclosed. Their comment will be added when received.

Council kept in the dark

According to insiders, DA councillor Ondela Kepe was insistent that the failure to disclose the names of those implicated by the SIU would render accountability efforts meaningless and allow wrongdoing to continue unchecked.

“In January, I asked whether we could move against officials who are implicated. Now we are expected to implement recommendations [to take action], yet we supposedly do not have the names.”

Two motions tabled by Kepe in January, calling for accountability over the dismal state of Nelson Mandela Bay’s streetlights, were dismissed.

In his first motion, Kepe sought the precautionary suspension of more than 10 officials from the Electricity and Energy Directorate who had been implicated by the SIU in alleged fraud and corruption linked to streetlight contracts.

In a second motion, which was also rejected, he called for the directorate to account for its failure to adequately prepare for streetlight contracts that had been in place since October last year.

Kepe said councillors were being asked to act without the most basic information. “Some of the recommendations are going to find us in a situation where we are chasing ghosts. It has been three months since those motions. Who knows what those officials have done?”

African Christian Democratic Party councillor Lance Grootboom shared Kepe’s concerns, accusing the administration of withholding critical information from the council.

Citing section 61 of the Municipal Finance Management Act, Grootboom said the city manager had a duty to provide council with adequate information so that it could make informed decisions.

“The information is so limited for the council to make a concrete recommendation. We do not have sufficient information before us to make that decision. We are requesting you to provide us with more information,” said Grootboom.

“How many forensic investigation reports have been tabled before this house? A lot of them. And they are not the same way they are presented today. How do we exercise our oversight with this limited information? There are officials currently in the system now; they work as we speak, and they are in this department. We, as a council, do not know who they are."

Freedom Front Plus councillor Bill Harington said it was concerning that some implicated officials had reportedly resigned before facing disciplinary action.

“Resignation must never be used as an escape route from justice. Every individual involved, whether official or contractor, must be pursued through the appropriate legal channels, including civil recovery and criminal prosecution,” he said.

Missing files, stalled action

The acting city manager, Lonwabo Ngoqo, painted a troubling picture of institutional failure, telling councillors that earlier SIU referrals were ignored.

“In 2024, the referrals were given to the municipality … nothing happened within 90 days,” said Ngoqo.

He told the council he only became aware of the matter after the SIU presented its findings to Parliament in March. Ngoqo then requested a formal SIU briefing, which took place on 9 April. It was during that process that deeper problems emerged.

He informed the council that files related to the matter had gone missing and cited a lack of internal capacity and fear among staff as reasons for delays in disciplinary action. “People are afraid to sit as prosecutors and chairpersons of disciplinary hearings of these matters,” he said.

Barred from attending

Ahead of the special council meeting, Daily Maverick learned the proceedings would be held in camera. Despite a formal request on Thursday, April 16, for the legal reasoning behind the closure and permission to attend, the municipality failed to provide a timely explanation.

Sithembiso Soyaya, the municipal director of communications, acknowledged the inquiry at 6pm that evening but noted that the directive from Speaker Eugene Johnson’s office arrived after the 4.30pm close of business. Although Soyaya promised a response by Friday after consulting the legal department, no further communication was received.

Shortly after the special council meeting on Friday, Soyaya’s office issued a media alert inviting journalists to a press briefing on the outcomes of the meeting.

“In line with the principles of Batho Pele, particularly the principle of transparency, the Municipality will host a media briefing to unpack the deliberations and resolutions taken on the agenda items,” the media alert stated.

“The Municipality remains committed to upholding transparency and accountability as guided by relevant legislation, including the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, which promotes openness and accountable governance; the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act, which requires municipalities to foster a culture of community participation and transparent decision-making; and the Municipal Finance Management Act, which enforces transparency, accountability, and sound financial governance within municipalities.”

Johnson said at the press conference that parts of the meeting were held in camera to ensure compliance with legal requirements and to safeguard the integrity of council processes.

Meanwhile, speaking about the 21 officials implicated in the streetlight tender fraud, Lobishe said that “processes” had started, while others have left the municipality after being called to face disciplinary processes.

Lobishe said the SIU had recommended that the municipality pursue civil action to recover money lost during the process. “It [the recovery of the money] must be dealt with externally because our internal audit [board] might not have the capacity to do forensic investigations, because there is no panel of investigators or permanently employed investigators.”

She said it appeared that contractors and municipal officials had colluded to rig tender processes and that the investigation had uncovered financial losses within the electricity and energy department. These leakages occurred because officials bypassed central delivery points, making it impossible to verify or audit procured goods. DM