Former Gauteng Health MEC Brian Hlongwa & Wife Granted Bail in R221 Million Tender Fraud Case
The case against former Gauteng Health MEC Brian Hlongwa, his wife and eight suspects linked to multi-million rand tender fraud in the Gauteng Health Department was remanded to 22 April 2022.
Hlongwa, his wife and the eight others appeared in the Johannesburg Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
They have been granted bail ranging from R20,000 to R50,000.
The accused are facing 258 charges ranging from fraud, corruption, money laundering and racketeering.
A ninth person is abroad and yet to hand themselves over to police.
The case stems from a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) report into the affairs of the Health Department at the time Hlongwa was MEC between 2006 to 2010.
The Gauteng Health Department awarded several contracts to an entity or juristic person which were initially meant for a period of two years, at a cost of R68 million per annum.
However, this amount was allegedly overspent to the tune of R221 million without any consequences to the individuals involved.
The report detailed alleged corruption in the awarding of tenders to his acquittances, amongst them, Richard John Payne
The National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA) Phinidi Mjonodwane says Payne and Hlongwa were acquittances and business partners who knew one another from the time when the MEC was a Councillor in the City of Johannesburg (CoJ).
She says 3P Consulting (Pty) Ltd a company in which Payne held joint ownership and directorship together with Kingdom Lolwane was contracted to do work for the CoJ.
“The Project Management Unit which was initially awarded a tender for a two-year term at a total value of R68 million ended up being extended for a further period of 3 years with a contract value of R273 366 500.00. The Department of Health paid a total amount of R347 678 325.08 for the PMU tender/contract before the expiration of the five-year term.”
Mjonodwane says 3P Consulting also charged the Gauteng Health Department an extra surcharge of 5% administrative fee on each and every invoice that was submitted to the Department of the PMU, despite the fact that such administrative fee was not part of the bid included in the Service Level Agreement.
