CAPE TOWN - Media reports emerged on Thursday that German software company SAP allegedly admitted to paying a bribe to secure a lucrative contract with state owned enterprises (SOEs).
They allegedly revealed to US authorities that they paid a 10% commission to a Gupta-linked company to secure a R100 million contract with South African SOEs.
Apparently SAP knew as far back as July 15 that they had paid a commission to secure contracts. The Gupta linked companies are allegedly linked to SOEs Transnet and Eskom.
Have you read: SAP to reveal Gupta-linked kickback details following internal investigation
The news comes a day after Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba delivered his Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) to parliament.
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The MTBPS did not make for easy listening as the country's growth forecast was slashed by half to 0.7% amid political and policy uncertainty linked to allegations of state capture and corruption.
Earlier on Thursday, Gigaba speaking at a Business Report post budget breakfast said that political uncertainty was hurting the economy. He said that corruption in SOE's also posed a serious threat to the economy.
SAP said in a statement that they called for an investigation which saw the suspension of three senior SAP officials in South Africa.
Have you read: Standard Bank may cut ties with McKinsey and SAP
View some of the reactions to the news on Twitter below:
If we had genuine Rule of Law, those who received the bribe were supposed to be arrested by now. https://t.co/8vFpbZd9I1
— Floyd Shivambu (@FloydShivambu) October 26, 2017
Its a big problem this.
— MORAKA (@morakamasipa) October 26, 2017
Holy guacamole. 🥑🥑🥑
— Erin Bates (@ermbates) October 26, 2017
#GuptaLeaks
— Richardson Mzaidume (@hlubizer) October 26, 2017
This is a breaking story and more will follow.
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SAP to reveal Gupta-linked kickback details following internal investigation