Everything must go! Gavin Watson’s BMW among Bosasa assets to be auctioned off
The auction, including properties, vehicles and equipment, is the final nail in the coffin of a company believed to have received roughly R12 billion from government tenders.
Bosasa CEO Gavin Watson, left, with then president Jacob Zuma on 11 April 2015 visiting the company’s Krugersdorp headquarters. Picture: Twitter
Park Village Auctions will be auctioning off the assets of African Global Operations, formerly known as Bosasa, on December 4 and 5.
An advertisement has been circulating for the auction, which will see items including late Bosasa CEO Gavin Watson’s metallic blue BMW X5 offered up.
This is only the tip of the iceberg, however, as the auction will see a host of vehicles – luxury, not-so-luxury, and commercial – office furniture, catering equipment, workshop and gardening tools, computer equipment, security equipment, office furniture, household furniture and several properties all going under the hammer.
The properties up for grabs include the controversial Lindela Repatriation Centre – where foreign nationals were deported and numerous human rights violations were reported – as well as the company’s head office and copper plant.
A viewing will take place on December 3 from 9am to 3pm for anyone wishing to score a bargain from the facilities management company’s spectacular fall from grace following testimony at the Zondo commission of inquiry into state capture implicating it in corruption.
The company went into voluntary liquidation in February this year following banks announcing that they would be closing all of their accounts due to corruption allegations.
Bosasa is believed to have received an estimated R12 billion in government tenders, and its former COO Angelo Agrizzi spilt the beans on alleged kickbacks and donations to prominent politicians under Jacob Zuma’s presidency at the commission.
Gavin Watson, a born-again Christian and anti-apartheid activist accused of orchestrating the corruption at the commission, died in a mysterious car crash on August 26.
His nephew, Jared Watson, has since accused Agrizzi of being the mastermind behind the alleged corruption that was pinned on Gavin, and Bosasa has laid fraud charges against Agrizzi as well as the company’s former chief financial officer, Andries van Tonder. Agrizzi has since announced that he will be dragging Jared to court on defamation charges, seeking R900,000 in damages.
(Compiled by Daniel Friedman)
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