Inanda police station was supposed to cost R15 million. Pienaar police station, Mpumalanga, was budgeted to cost R40m. And the police station in KwaMaphumulo was going to cost the police R7m to build from foundation to finish.
Instead, though, the South African Police Service forked out R134m for the two stations in Inanda and Pienaar. And for the third, in KwaMaphumulo, only a big rock exists where the station should be.
This is according to national police commissioner General Bheki Cele.
These are just three of 33 police stations currently under scrutiny by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU).
The unit has been engaged in a wide-ranging probe into three former police generals, who allegedly benefited from R4 billion worth of irregularly awarded and inflated tenders.
The ex-top cops being investigated for the past 11 months are Lieutenant-General Hamilton Hlela, who was a deputy national police commissioner and head of the SAPS supply chain management; Lieutenant-General Matthews Siwundla; and Major-General Stefanus Terblanche.
Other contracts currently being probed include:
* the building of 33 police stations at a cost of R330m;
* the goods and services provided to the Forensic Science Laboratory;
* the procurement of certain leases for the SAPS;
* the procurement of information management systems;
* the manufacturing and supply of SAPS uniforms;
* the irregularities in awarding a R1bn radio communications tender in the Eastern Cape to the successful bidder.
This week, Cele told The Star about the extraordinarily high cost of police stations, which was questioned.
He confirmed he had asked the SIU, headed by Willie Hofmeyr, to investigate.
His main concern was that for the police stations built by the Midway Two company, the state had paid anything up to four times the original amount.
Midway Two is alleged to be at the centre of the irregularities being investigated by the SIU.
On Tuesday, unit spokesman Karam Singh confirmed that the investigation was focused on the police officials, who “were found to have direct interests in entities that have been awarded contracts by the SAPS and the processes followed in the awarding of such contracts”.
However, Singh was tight-lipped about the involvement of Midway Two.
“The only thing the SIU can confirm at this stage is that it is aware of the allegations against Midway Two, including procurement and contractual irregularities and possible non-delivery of goods and/or services,” said Singh.
However, The Star understands that Cele wants the unit to probe how Midway Two had a near-monopoly on all SAPS contracts that had been allocated by the supply chain management.
The contracts (valued at billions of rand) were for the supply of vehicle spare parts, cleaning services, security services, construction services and vehicle-towing services.
The Star understands that the SIU has also been asked to probe allegations that Midway Two sent Hlela on a fully paid trip to the Rugby World Cup in Australia in 2003.
“To say that I was shocked by the state of affairs in this division would be the understatement of the century. Contracts were signed without any members of the bid committee actually sitting down for a meeting. Instead, members of the committee would sign their approval of tender awards from wherever they each would be at a particular point in time. Some of the contracts were signed in 2009 and only meant to be effective from April 2012,” Cele said.
“The SAPS has nothing to show for the more than R900m that has already been spent on a contract to provide radio communication services in the Eastern Cape, yet more money was being allocated to this contract despite the fact that no one could tell me, as the accounting officer, why this service was needed in the SAPS in the first place,” he added.
He said the SIU’s investigation was in terms of a presidential proclamation signed by President Jacob Zuma in July and August last year.
He said the SAPS leadership had taken a decision in September 2009 to use co-operatives formed by retrenched textile workers to provide uniforms for police officers, only to find that the contract to a private company, which had expired when the decision was taken, was extended, allegedly by Hlela, to expire in 2013.
He said the uniforms exercise had been an attempt for the SAPS to contribute to the national effort to create jobs.
The national commissioner said the extraordinarily high cost of police stations needed to be investigated.
His main concern was that for the police stations built by Midway Two, the state had paid anything up to four times the original amount.
The commissioner said he had met with Hofmeyr in November 2009 to request an urgent investigation into the supply chain management division.
Cele subsequently learnt that the SIU was at that time sitting with a similar request from the SAPS’s Independent Complaints Directorate division, lodged in May 2009.
Cele said his decision to remove the three generals from the supply chain management environment had been taken after advice he had received from the SIU.
When Cele approached two of the generals to explain his reasons for wanting to suspend them, they offered to resign. He had wanted to place the generals on paid leave while investigations into their roles within supply chain management was investigated.
Hlela had offered to resign, Terblanche took the same option and Siwundla had requested to go on early retirement for personal reasons.
“I signed the directive terminating their services for one reason only: To bring efficiencies to the service,” the commissioner said.
Hlela said on Tuesday the allegations were baseless.
“There are no tender irregularities. The SIU can investigate.
“They can carry on with their investigation. They won’t find anything at fault. Whatever Midway got, they got legally. There were no irregularities.”
He admitted going to the Rugby World Cup in France in 2007, but said he could not remember who had paid for the trip.
“I went to that World Cup, but I can’t remember that now. It’s a pity I’m not at home, so I can’t look at my books. I am not in Pretoria at the moment, I am out of town.
“Matthews was chairing the tender board. He was the chair of the tender committee, you should speak to him.”
Siwundla was tight-lipped.
“I am not sure what kind of comment you are looking for. I have long retired from the police. I’m not sure what contracts you are talking about. Contracts were only signed in terms of the regulations.”
He added he had not been the chairman on the tender board for any tenders exceeding R3m.
If the SIU finds evidence of criminal acts, it will refer the matters to the Hawks. - The Star