In documents leaked from the Standard Bank earlier yesterday, Maziya General Services is proven to have received bid bonds of up to 80 million rands from the bank - contrary to the whistleblower's report.
Image: supplied
In documents leaked from the Standard Bank earlier yesterday, Maziya General Services is proven to have received bid bonds of up to 80 million rands from the bank - contrary to the whistleblower's report.
Image: supplied
In documents leaked from the Standard Bank earlier yesterday, Maziya General Services is proven to have received bid bonds of up to 80 million rands from the bank - contrary to the whistleblower's report.
Image: supplied
In documents leaked from the Standard Bank earlier yesterday, Maziya General Services is proven to have received bid bonds of up to 80 million rands from the bank - contrary to the whistleblower's report.
Image: supplied
In documents leaked from the Standard Bank earlier yesterday, Maziya General Services is proven to have received bid bonds of up to 80 million rands from the bank - contrary to the whistleblower's report.
Image: supplied
A leaked Standard Bank letter to the Passenger Rail Agency South Africa and Maziya General Services has rebutted many media articles that circulated last week.
A whistleblower’s report stunned the country, alleging that two tenders awarded to Maziya General Services for a global system for mobile communications-railway redundancy network in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, and Western Cape were awarded unprocedurally. The letter compiled by a self-proclaimed whistleblower alleges that almost R2.7 billion in advance payments was made and that two tenders worth R17.4bn were unprocedurally awarded.
It turns out that the whistle-blower may have lied. In documents leaked from the Standard Bank earlier yesterday, Maziya General Services is proven to have received bid bonds of up to 80 million rands from the bank - contrary to the whistleblower’s report.
On 29 March 2022, the bank wrote to both Prasa and Maziya: “Standard Bank of South Africa Limited (Registration Number: 1962/000738/06), being a South African bank whose primary place of business operations is South Africa and situated at Trade Services, 1st Floor, 6 Simmonds Street, Johannesburg, Republic of South Africa (the Bank), provide Prasa with such required Bid Bond/Security.
The Bank, hereby irrevocably and unconditionally guarantees and undertakes on behalf of the Bidder to pay Prasa, without objection or argument, amounts up to a maximum aggregate amount Of ZAR 31 200 000.00 (say South African Rands Thirty-One Million Two Hundred Thousand only) (the Bid Bond/Security Amount)”
While the report says that unnamed senior Prasa officials were involved in the payment of a company that was not registered, The Star has seen Maziya’s registration documents and tender application documents. The whistleblower claims that the company was irregularly appointed and without and was devoid of an appointment letter. However, letters dated 08/05/2023 and 21/07/23 prove that Prasa Group CEO Hishaam Emeran wrote to Mike Cassim of Maziya General Service to confirm Maziya as the appointed company for tender. The letter reads: “BID NUMBER: HO/SAD/112/11/2021- THE PLANNING. DESIGN. SUPPLY. CONSTRUCTION, INSTALLATION. TESTING, COMMISSIONING AND MAINTENANCE OF A NEW AND EXPANDED FULLY INTEGRATED, FUNCTIONAL, COMPLETE AND FUTURE-PROOFED NATIONAL GLOBAL SYSTEM FOR MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS-RAILWAY IN PRASA'S GAUTENG, KWAZULU-NATAL AND WESTERN OPS.
''It gives me great pleasure to inform you that the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa has appointed MACRE J for the GSM Redundancy Network Project in PRASA for (Gauteng, WC AND KZN REGIONS) for a period of seven and half (7,5) years to execute the project, at an amount of R6 317 376 574.98 (Six billion, three hundred and seventeen million, three hundred and seventy-six thousand, five hundred and seventy four rands and ninety-eight cents)''. The calculated ratio of work was that Maziya’a quotes were even below current global standards.
NGO Right to Justice has written to Transport Minister Barbara Creecy, attaching evidence that Maziya was in competition with two “white” companies and after a series of consultations with the companies, who were in turn the bid losers, the report was compiled. Sources inside Prasa have blamed the “fake” report on a syndicate allegedly run by a cohort-linked to Daniel Mthimkhulu, a former head of engineering at Prasa.
Mthimkhulu was sentenced to 15 years following a conviction for nine counts of fraud, including the misrepresentation of qualifications.
In a statement, Prasa emphasised that the sentence, delivered by the Specialised Commercial Crimes Court sitting in Palm Ridge, served as a stern warning to individuals attempting to defraud or engage in corrupt practices within Prasa or other state entities. This is a developing story.