Staff Reporter.
The North Gauteng High Court in Pretoria ordered former minister Bathabile Dlamini and her then spokesperson Lumka Oliphant to cough up R3.5-million spent on their private security.
The security services contract was approved by the South African Social Security Agency (Sassa), an entity that Dlamini was in charge of while she served as minister of the Department of Social Development (DSD).
Durban-based security company Vuco Security Solutions was hired to provide the protection services.
Virginia Petersen was at the helm of Sassa when the agency procured the emergency close protection services at Dlamini’s insistence.
The court ordered that she, too, must repay Sassa jointly with Dlamini and Oliphant.
In a statement on Monday, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said it hopes the court judgement will put an end to corruption and misconduct at Sassa.
“It is shocking that this matter would have been swept under the carpet had it not been for the DA’s pressure and questions regarding the matter,” said the opposition in a statement.
“This judgment is a victory for the enforcement of accountability and the fight against the type of impunity that typified the state capture of the [former president Jacob] Zuma years.
“This includes the grant crisis which saw Dlamini lie under oath that left millions of grant recipients out in the cold.
“Hopefully, this judgment will put an end to Sassa’s long history of prioritising top management over grant beneficiaries.”
In April 2022, Dlamini was sentenced to four years in prison or a fine of R200 000, half of which were suspended. This after the Johannesburg magistrate’s court found her guilty of perjury in March 2022.
Compiled by Lehlohonolo Lehana.