Has the MM broken the law to award R31mil security contract?
Acting municipal manager, Bongiwe Mnikathi, may have broken the law when she signed off a R31million contract with Durban based security company, LK Security Solutions, under dubious circumstances.
Estella Naicker
Acting municipal manager, Bongiwe Mnikathi, may have broken the law when she signed off a R31million contract with Durban based security company, LK Security Solutions, under dubious circumstances.
A court order issued this year clearly stipulates that any contracts signed by Ms Mnikathi had to be ratified by the council first. This court order followed when the council decided to keep Ms Mnikathi on as the acting municipal manager despite her three-month term having expired.
However, AbaQulusi councillors, including the members of the Executive Committee (Exco), say they have absolutely no knowledge of the tender that was awarded and confirmed that the decision to sign the contract was never heard in council.
Ms Mnikathi issued a letter to LK Security Solutions on May 25, informing the company that it had been awarded the contract for provision of security services at AbaQulusi.
Exco member, Harry Heyns, confirmed that the council had been completely unaware of the contract and had written to Ms Mnikathi asking for an explanation, but she had not responded to Cllr Heyns at the time of print.
Speaker of the council, Mphumzeni Mtshali, appeared equally perplexed to hear of the security contract being awarded without the council’s knowledge. Cllr Mtshali agreed that while contracts were usually left up to the administration component of the municipality, it appeared that Ms Mnikathi had violated the court order when she signed the document awarding the tender to LK Security without the council’s knowledge. “I cannot tell you for certain if she broke the law or not or if she was authorised to sign, until I have had the opportunity to speak to our legal advisors,” said Cllr Mthsali. “I need to investigate the matter properly before I can say anything for certain.”
Lungani Ntombela of LK Security Solutions was questioned about the services the company would be rendering in AbaQulusi, however, he refused to engage with the Vryheid Herald saying that this information should be obtained from municipality.
Ms Mnikathi and AbaQulusi media liaison officer, Arnold Ramodibe, issued a press release to explain what happened.
