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Anton Bredell, Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, welcomes the judgment delivered by the Special Tribunal of the Special Investigations Unit in the matter Special Investigating Unit and Matzikama Municipality v Duneco CC and 4 Others (Case No WC/05/22) on 23 June 2023.

The Special Tribunal’s judgment implicated several municipal officials of the Matzikama Municipality including Mr A. Hendricks, the acting-Municipal Manager at the time, Mr I.E. Jenner, the Municipality’s COVID-19 Coordinator at the time, and Mr J. Booysen. the Chief Financial Officer at the time. These officials, together with Mr N.J. Klazen, from the service provider supplying the personal protection equipment, were found to have engaged in serious misconduct related to the purchase and supply of PPE during the COVID-19 pandemic, and that an amount of just over R400,000 in irregular expenditure must be personally recovered from the implicated officials.

The Special Tribunal’s judgment is a direct consequence of the SIU’s investigation into the matter - the Minister had a number of engagements with the Matzikama Municipality regarding the findings and recommendations that the SIU made during its investigation, and it was after these engagements that the SIU initiated civil proceedings against the implicated officials to recover the irregular expenditure.

Importantly, while the Special Tribunal has now ruled on the civil recovery of the irregular expenditure, the ongoing criminal proceedings being led by the Hawks remains ongoing. The implicated officials were initially arrested and charged in 2022, shortly after the SIU investigation concluded, and the related criminal trial is set down to be heard in July 2023. The Minister is awaiting the outcome of the criminal trial to determine whether the legislative provisions relating to the prohibition of convicted and sentenced persons from being re-employed in a municipality will be applicable to the current implicated municipal managers.

Furthermore, the Minister’s own investigation which was initiated in terms of section 106 of the Municipal Systems Act, 32 of 2000 has also been concluded and he is considering the five reports prepared by the independent forensic investigators – these will be released in due course.

The Minister will continue to closely monitor both the civil recovery process being led by the SIU and the ongoing criminal proceedings being led by the Hawks. Should any further adverse findings or criminal convictions be made by the courts, the Minister will not hesitate to take appropriate action in accordance with his powers under the Constitution and the local government legislative framework, should there be a legal basis to do so.

Issued by Western Cape Police Oversight and Community Safety