Durban- The office of the premier in KwaZulu-Natal is investigating an IFP politician after he allegedly duped two businessmen into a tender deal using forged documents.
The men allege that MPL Hassan Farouk Motala lured the directors of a Pinetown food company into a deal to supply soya and soup products for a food parcel project run by the premier’s office.
But spokesman Thami Ngwenya has confirmed that there was no tender and the matter was being investigated.
One of the managers of the company, Jay Naidoo, said Motala had approached the directors asking them to take over a tender after the previous supplier had failed to deliver.
Motala asked them for a refundable deposit of R500 000, saying that because the previous supplier let them down a deposit was needed to ensure that they delivered.
“Motala said that it was too late to restart the tender process and that he needed a company to take over as soon as possible.
“We had several business meetings with Motala and two others who he alleged were from the office of the premier and the KZN treasury.
“After reaching an agreement, we were told that we had to pay a deposit to seal the deal because the previous supplier let them down,” said Naidoo.
Deposit
The next day they met Motala in one of the boardrooms at the KZN Legislature.
“We were presented with documents which included a letter of award for an amount of just over R65 million from the office of the premier. It had the relevant stamps and signatures. We were also given a letter of acceptance from the KZN treasury.
Naidoo said they agreed to make a deposit by EFT the next day.
“Motala and the other two men said they needed the money as soon as possible due to the urgency of the deal and that an EFT would take too long. They asked for the cash instead. We found this rather suspicious and wanted to cancel the deal,” he said.
He said Motala returned from his car with two KFC packets filled with R20 000. He gave it to the representatives from the Office of the Premier and KZN Treasury to show good faith on their behalf.
“We never asked him to exchange this money on our behalf. He did this on his own.
“We were concerned, but this money transfer was done openly in Parliament, and with people walking in and out of the boardroom; so our fears were allayed,” he said.
The next day R370 000 was given to Motala at the IFP building in Durban.
“They agreed to keep the funds in the IFP safe and then to take it to the Treasury and provide us with a receipt. We asked for a new (tender) award letter.
“We agreed to meet a few days afterwards and exchange the rest of the money. But prior to this, we called the office of the premier and the KZN treasury to confirm the validity of the documents. We sent the documents to them and they confirmed that the tender was not authentic,” he said.
Motala said he had done nothing wrong and that he was merely a facilitator in the deal.
“In fact, they borrowed money from me for the deal. I was there to ensure the deal went well.
“The gentlemen involved are bankrollers for the ANC in KZN. I was present for a meeting where they were concluding a R65 million deal. One of the directors borrowed money from me to conclude the deal which I have not yet been paid back. I was simply a facilitator,” said Motala.
The premier’s office confirmed that the documents were fake and that no such tender existed.
“This is serious fraud.… The employee who signed the document does not even exist. Furthermore, the letterheads used were forged as well as the signatures,” Ngwenya said.
IFP national chairman Blessed Gwala said that the matter would be investigated.
The Sunday Tribune was able to confirm that Motala had paid back a sum of money to the company this week, which he alleges, was for a different deal.
Sunday Tribune