uMngeni Municipality to probe inflated legal costs

uMngeni Municipality has confirmed the start of an investigation into the appointment and costs associated with Mhlanga Incorporated.

The municipality said the investigation was in line with its stance on consequence management and good financial control.

The DA-run municipality said this during a special in-committee sitting of the executive committee recently.

The Durban-based law firm is run by lawyer Sthembelo Ralph Mhlanga, who was arrested last month together with a director-general in the office of the KwaZulu-Natal premier, Dr Nonhlanhla Mkhize.

Also arrested were suspended Mhlathuze Water CEO Mthokozisi Duze, and three other people. All the arrests were in relation to the alleged corruption at Mhlathuze Water in Richards Bay.

They face charges of intimidation, obstructing the course of justice and fraud after internal auditors at Mhlathuze Water discovered illegal procurements amounting to R37 million.READ MOREMunicipal manager candidate’s past questioned

Mayor Chris Pappas said the municipality was saddled with a huge legal bill in the last financial year (2021/22) from Mhlanga Incorporated.

This came after the municipality appointed the law firm as the independent investigator to provide advice to council on the corruption that was uncovered by the SIU in relation to Covid-19 expenditure.

Pappas said a preliminary investigation revealed that Mhlanga Incorporated has seriously overcharged the municipality.

He said the firm has taken advantage of a time-bound and serious matter that was faced by the municipality at the time.

Introductory evidence indicates that uMngeni Municipality could have been overbilled by up to three times as much as the industry accepted rates on a number of line items. The first sitting of Exco has provided a strong base for the internal investigation.