Controversial businessman Mthunzi Mdwaba told to cough up as UIF contract set aside

The Gauteng High Court in Pretoria has set aside businessman Mthunzi Mdwaba’s controversial R5-billion contract with the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), declaring it unlawful.

Acting Judge Japie Maritzaritz also ordered Mdwaba to stop defamatory claims against employment and labour minister Thulas Nxesi.

The former Productivity SA chair and Thuja Holdings chief executive alleged Nxesi, finance minister Enoch Godongwana, higher education minister Blade Nzimande, and ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula of trying to solicit a 10% bribe for a “now failed UIF R5 billion deal”.

READ MORE: Godongwana wins case against businessman Mthunzi Mdwaba over bribery allegations

Mdwaba was himself accused of allegedly attempting to redirect funds to his private company.

All four politicians denied the allegations levelled against them by Mdwaba.

Nzimande served Mdwaba with a cease and desist letter and threatened further legal action. While Godogwana won a court order earlier this year to stop Mdwaba from making defamatory remarks about him and his utterances declared false.

Nxesi had sought the same remedy and for the court to declare the contract with Mdwaba invalid.

The court granted this, and found “the written contract invalid and set aside”.

“The first respondent [Mdwaba] is interdicted from publicly uttering any statement to the effect that the applicant had been corrupt or extortionate when prohibiting the implementation of the contract,” it added.

Mdwaba was ordered to pay costs.

‘Easy to soil one another with the corruption tag’

Responding previously to the allegations against him, Mbalula said: “In South African political parlance, it has become too easy to soil one another with the corruption tag.

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“Corruption eats away at the very important gains of democracy; it defers the dreams of the entire nation, black and white.”