By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The high-profile corruption case involving former Minister of Public Enterprises Dr Malusi Gigaba and several former top executives of Transnet has been postponed to 19 February.
Gigaba, former Transnet Group Chief Financial Officer Anoj Singh, former Group Chief Executive Officer Brian Molefe, former Chief Executive Officer Siyabonga Gama and former Chief Procurement Officer Thamsanqa Jiyane, appeared at the Palm Ridge Specialised Commercial Crime Court on Friday.
They face a string of charges including fraud, corruption and breaches of both the Public Finance Management Act and the Companies Act.
Their case was postponed to allow the matter to be enrolled and heard in the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg.
Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC) spokesperson Henry Mamothame said the state confirmed on record that notices of trial and indictments had been served on all the accused.
“These indictments relate to the period during which Transnet embarked on the acquisition of locomotives to expand and modernise the country’s rail infrastructure,” Mamothame said.
“During this process, tender procedures were flouted and three contracts for the supply of 95, 100, and 1,064 locomotives were irregularly awarded, resulting in losses amounting to billions of rands for Transnet.”
The state alleges that Gigaba accepted undisclosed amounts of cash from members of the Gupta family while serving as minister of public enterprises.
The matter has been under investigation for several years, amid growing concerns over governance and accountability in state-owned enterprises.
Transnet has previously acknowledged the irregularities in the contracts but has maintained that it is cooperating fully with authorities.
Gigaba was appointed public enterprises minister after a fallout between then President Jacob Zuma and then minister Barbara Hogan after she refused to rehire Gama at Transnet after his initial dismissal. Gigaba remained minister until May 2014, during which time the 1064 locomotives deal went through.
Gigaba is one of the key figures implicated in the State Capture saga. In Part 2 of the State Capture Report, a staggering 506 pages are devoted to Transnet — detailing how the parastatal was ensnared in what the commission described as “a systematic scheme of securing illicit and corrupt influence or control over decision-making”.