Lost R17m: Polokwane municipal officials under fire for alleged corruption

Three executives in the Polokwane municipality in Limpopo implicated in the R17 million Leeto La Polokwane bus procurement scandal will soon face the full might of the law.

This was promised by executive mayor of the Polokwane municipality in Limpopo, John Mpe. Mpe was speaking during a media briefing at the weekend.

The council had organised a media tour to showcase progress made by the municipaity in the Re aga Polokwane (We are building Polokwane) programme.

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Enhancing municipal infrastructure

The programme, Mpe said, seeks to give the city a facelift through big projects, with bulk water provision, electricity connection, road infrastructure, park maintenance and the cleanup of the environment topping the list of priorities.

It is also aimed at making Polokwane a tourist destination of choice and an environmental friendly gateway to the countries of Southern African Development Community.

The mayor said construction of the R35 million Leeto La Polokwane Bus Station created 50 jobs. In the current financial year, the municipaity planned to invest R16 million in four new buses. But the procurement process for this was not without controversy, he said.

In 2018, the municipality paid R17 million for the procurement of several buses but none were delivered. It was later established that the company that was supposed to deliver the buses had been liquidated. The money could not be recovered.

When Mpe joined the municipaity from Capricorn district, where he was the mayor, the EFF and DA asked him to call for an investigation. The probe implicated the former municipal manager, former chief financial officer, manager of the project management unit and several junior staffers. Mpe said the net was about to close on those implicated.

“A disciplinary inquiry was instituted against six employees implicated in the forensic report over tender irregularities,” he said. Three officials resigned during disciplinary proceedings, while the hearings for the remaining three were ongoing

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