THE eThekwini Municipality, working with the South African Police Service (SAPS), have made a breakthrough in the jobs for sale saga after one person was arrested on Thursday, 9 October.
The arrest follows investigations by the City Integrity and Investigations Unit after numerous complaints were received from the public, who have been made to part with their hard earned cash by people who promised them jobs at the municipality.
Yesterday, investigators received a tip off from a member of the public about a person purporting to be a municipal employee demanding to be paid money to find a job for the victim.
A trap was set up and the exchange took place outside City Hall. The con man was arrested on the spot and was expected to appear in court on Friday, 10 October,” said municipal spokesman, Thabo Mofokeng.
The municipality thanked the public for their cooperation and for coming forward with information that has led to the arrest.
“The municipality has recently issued several warnings to the public to be aware of fraudsters who use different modus operandi to rob desperate victims.
Last month the municipality became aware of fraudulent advertisements for municipal vacancies placed on the Gumtree and AdsAfrica websites. These advertisements always include a fee to be paid by the applicant in order to register or apply,” Mofokeng added.
In another case, an applicant received an email, supposedly from the municipal E-Careers site, inviting the person to go for an interview and to pay a fee. E-careers is the municipality’s online recruitment system.
“The municipality does not charge the public to apply for jobs. This is a free service. We appeal to the public not to respond to any of these job advertisements because they are bogus,” Mofokeng urged.
Report such cases to the City Integrity and Investigations Unit on 0800 202020.
