Durban — The director-general (DG) in the office of the KwaZulu-Natal premier, Dr Nonhlanhla Mkhize, and her alleged accomplice were to spend another night in custody on Tuesday night.
Mkhize, 49, Simphiwe Mabaso, 43 (official), Sthembiso Ralph Mhlanga, 41 (official), Mthokozisi Pius Duze, 49 (CEO), Babongile Mnyandu 43 (CFO), and Thabiso Khumalo, 35, appeared in the Durban Specialised Commercial Crime Court on Tuesday.
They are alleged to be involved in unlawful activities and fraud of R37 million in relation to a Mhlatuze Water procurement project in November 2018.
Mkhize, Mabaso, Mhlanga and Duze are charged with intimidation, defeating or obstructing the course of justice, and fraud.
According to charge sheet 115, Duze, Mhlanga, Khumalo and Mnyandu are facing fraud and corruption charges.
Charge sheet 114 stated that Mkhize had acted in furtherance of a common purpose, and did unlawfully and with intent to compel or induce, “to wit the chairperson of the board of Mhlathuze to do or to abstain from doing any act or to assume or abandon a standpoint to wit; stop the forensic investigations sanctioned by the resolution of the board into the irregularities in the award of contracts at Mhlathuze by threatening to arrest the chairperson, implicate her in wrongdoings, and to compel her to meet Mhlanga and his company, who were implicated in the report, at a secluded location”.
It further stated that Mkhize defeated or obstructed the course of justice from February 11 to February 14, and induced and coerced the chairperson of the board of Mhlathuze to meet Mhlanga and Duze.
“She demanded that the chairperson resolve a matter under investigation by a forensic practitioner whose preliminary report was sanctioned by a board resolution, and also the subject of criminal investigations.
“A demand was made for the chairperson to hand over a copy of a forensic report which was confidential and possessed exclusively by the chairperson; this conduct amounts to defeating and/ or obstructing the course of justice,” said the charge sheet.
It said that on February 13, 2022, Mkhize intentionally misled the chairperson of the board of Mhlatuze.
Bail was not opposed in respect of Mnyandu and Khumalo, while the remaining accused were remanded in custody for a bail application on Wednesday. Mnyandu was granted bail of R60 000 while Khumalo’s bail was set at R5 000.
The pair are due back in court on December 6.
Daily News