WeeklySA_AdminENGINEERING COMPANY FACES R76M LAWSUIT
The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has welcomed a Constitutional Court judgment dismissing an application to appeal a High Court order bid by engineering company Mphaphuli Consulting to have the unit’s report on Operation Mabone reviewed and set aside.
In 2013, the Greater Tubatse Local Municipality (now known as Fetakgomo Tubatse Municipality) entered into a contract with the company to connect at least 13 000 houses to the grid worth some R168.8 million.
An investigation by the SIU found that the company – owned by Lufuno Mphaphuli – allegedly overcharged the municipality by at least R73 million after costs skyrocketed as the municipality twice amended the contract – bringing the total number of houses to be electrified to 19 000, at a cost of at least R326 million.
“In the judgment dated 3 June 2024, the Constitutional Court states that it ‘considered the application for condonation and application for leave to appeal and has concluded that the application for leave does not engage its jurisdiction. Consequently, leave to appeal must be refused with costs and the Court need not decide the application for condonation’.
The decision now paves the way for the civil claim against the engineering company to recover approximately R76 million . – SA news.
POLICE MINISTER FAILS TO MAKE THE CUT
The longstanding minister of police Bheki Cele says he is ready for change as he is not expected to return to Parliament for its seventh administration. Cele was at number 79 on the African National Congress (ANC) national list to Parliament, according to the seat allocations released by the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC).
He did not make the cut, number 73 was the last to make it to Parliament. The IEC handed over the official lists of designated MPs and MPLs to Chief Justice Raymond Zondo this week.
Cele, speaking during a vehicle handover ceremony at the Tshwane Police Academy on Friday, said he has no hard feelings and he expressed gratitude for the opportunity to serve the people of South Africa.
“I have a home. As a human being, if there is a start, you would be mad not to think about the end. There is a start and the end has arrived, if it has arrived. I left home to come and work, so if work is not there, I go home and reflect, see how you go forward. “- Lehlohonolo Lehana.
ENGINEERING COMPANY FACES R76M LAWSUIT
The Special Investigating Unit (SIU) has welcomed a Constitutional Court judgment dismissing an application to appeal a High Court order bid by engineering company Mphaphuli Consulting to have the unit’s report on Operation Mabone reviewed and set aside.
In 2013, the Greater Tubatse Local Municipality (now known as Fetakgomo Tubatse Municipality) entered into a contract with the company to connect at least 13 000 houses to the grid worth some R168.8 million. An investigation by the SIU found that the company – owned by Lufuno Mphaphuli – allegedly overcharged the municipality by at least R73 million after costs skyrocketed as the municipality twice amended the contract – bringing the total number of houses to be electrified to 19 000, at a cost of at least R326 million.
“In the judgment dated 3 June 2024, the Constitutional Court states that it ‘considered the application for condonation and application for leave to appeal and has concluded that the application for leave does not engage its jurisdiction. Consequently, leave to appeal must be refused with costs and the Court need not decide the application for condonation’. The decision now paves the way for the civil claim against the engineering company to recover approximately R76 million . – SA news.
US ARTIST TO APPEAL
20 YEAR JAIL TERM
A US federal appeals court has upheld R. Kelly’s 20-year prison sentence over child pornography and other crimes, rejecting the R&B singer’s defence that the case was filed too late. Kelly was sentenced in February last year but his lawyers argued the statute of limitations had passed by the time he was charged, a defense the Chicago court rejected on Friday. “For years, Robert Sylvester Kelly abused underage girls. By employing a complex scheme to keep victims quiet, he long evaded consequences,” Judge Amy St. Eve wrote in the ruling by the three-panel bench.
“Those crimes caught up with him at last. But Kelly, interposing a statute-of-limitations defence, thinks he delayed the charges long enough to elude them entirely. The statute says otherwise, so we affirm his conviction.” Kelly (57), is already serving a 30-year sentence he received after a Brooklyn jury in a separate federal trial convicted him on racketeering and sex trafficking charges. – Fullview
CONSUMERS WARNED AGAINST BACTERIA-LACED SHAMPOO
The National Consumer Commission (NCC) has urged consumers in possession of 50ml single-use neutralising shampoo contained in Dark and Lovely Moisture Plus Kits (Regular, and Super) and Dark and Lovely Anti Breakage Kit to immediately discontinue use of the product and return it to the point of sale for a full refund.
The manufacturer, Loreal informed the NCC that it has detected bacteria in 50ml single-use neutralizing shampoo in Dark & Lovely Moisture Plus Kits and Dark & Lovely Anti Breakage Kit which could lead to scalp infections in those with a compromised immune system. In a statement, the NCC’s Deputy Commissioner Thezi Mabuza, said: “While this is single-use shampoo, we urge South Africans who might still have these products in their possession to stop use and return to the point of purchase for a full refund.’’
The product, produced in April 2023, was distributed nationally, and exported to neighbouring countries such as Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Kenya, Ghana, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Morocco, and Nigeria. – Lehlohonolo Lehana
