Agrizzi dismisses Dudu Myeni’s claim of never meeting Gavin Watson
The former COO says that at one of the meetings, the former SAA chairperson wanted Bosasa to take over services and contracts at SAA.
Dudu Myeni (far left) with Jacob Zuma and Bosasa executives on a visit to one of their plants. Picture: Facebook
Former Bosasa COO Angelo Agrizzi at the commission of inquiry into state capture on Friday dismissed former SAA chairperson Dudu Myeni’s claim that she had never met the controversial company’s CEO, Gavin Watson, but had only been part of a delegation visiting the company’s prawn plant on an official visit.
During his first round of testimony in January, Agrizzi dropped the bombshell that Watson had allegedly committed to paying Myeni R300,000 in cash in a Louis Vuitton handbag he delivered himself.
He mentioned that it was understood that these monthly payments would allegedly buy favour with then-president Jacob Zuma through the Jacob G Zuma Foundation, which Myeni chaired.
Following this revelation, Myeni sent eNCA texts responding, saying: “I have never had a meeting at Bosasa offices with Gavin. We went as a delegation to see their prawn plant, it was an official visit.”
ALSO READ: Photo of Dudu Myeni and Zuma with Gavin Watson causes a stir
Agrizzi said on Friday that this was not true because he had attended four meetings in different venues where Myeni and Watson had been present.
The third meeting took place at a conference room in a hotel at OR Tambo and it was attended by Myeni, Watson, former SAA CEO Nico Bezuidenhout and himself, Agrizzi told the commission.
At the meeting, Myeni raised a discussion about a security and catering tender at the national carrier, which she said she wanted Bosasa to consider taking over.
“I realised that this was going south and I painted a picture to Gavin Watson that I didn’t want to even look at it,” Agrizzi told the commission, explaining that he convinced Watson that the tenders were not feasible and the company should not take them over, which the company’s CEO agreed to.
However, Agrizzi said the real reason he was not interested in the tenders was that he wanted to stay away from Myeni, the foundation she chaired, and SAA.
In late January, an employee of Bosasa subsidiary GTS (previously known as Sondolo IT) told the commission that he was instructed to delete the video footage showing Zuma accompanied by Myeni and Police Minister Bheki Cele paying a visit to Bosasa premises.
READ MORE: Video footage of Zuma, Myeni and Cele visit to Bosasa deleted
Agrizzi also previously told the commission that Myeni was instrumental in a fracking deal the company sought to be part of.
READ MORE: Agrizzi testifies about Dudu Myeni and Zuma’s role in Bosasa fracking deal
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