Victims of the Free State government's R255m asbestos roofing scandal this week gave chilling insight into a scam that lifted the lid on the murky underworld of tenders for cronies, bling lifestyles and generous donations to top ANC figures.
Residents whose houses were meant to be upgraded by the project told the Sunday Times the "audit" was haphazard, with aimless and casual inspections in some cases. Hopes were raised, and promises broken.
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The alleged big winner in the debacle is Edwin Sodi, the businessman and ANC funder at the centre of the saga, who owned flashy cars and properties, some of which were attached by the Asset Forfeiture Unit ahead of his court appearance with six others on fraud and corruption charges.
Among the vehicles seized were a 2019 Porsche Cayenne S Coupe valued at R1.9m, a 2017 Rolls-Royce Dawn worth R5.3m and a R2.8m 2017 Bentley Continental Supersports convertible.
And according to the charge sheet, Sodi lives in a mansion in Bryanston that was, until this week, for sale for R85m.
The flashy status symbols speak of Sodi's success in landing lucrative state tenders. He and his business partner were paid R230m for the Free State housing audit, even though he subcontracted the work to a second company, which in turn kicked it down to a third. Now he is demanding the Free State government pay him the balance of R25m remaining on the contract.
But the people of the Free State have gained nothing from the spending.
Richard Spoor, a lawyer who has litigated asbestosis cases, said the Free State asbestos audit was "a worthless piece of paper". "We are no better off now than we were before the money was spent," he said.
In Bakenpan, Bethlehem, Ewin Ackeer said he installed a ceiling in his asbestos-cement-roofed house three weeks ago, after he went to the doctor. "The doctor said I had to. For years I have been coughing and battling to breathe. Our entire family battles from all the dust that comes from the roof."
He said his father, who had lived with them in the house, died of lung cancer.
In Fauresmith, Simon Africa said five inspectors had come to his area. "I showed them the holes in my roof. I wanted to take them inside, but they were not interested.
"There are 4,000 people living here. They maybe looked at 10 houses. They walked around, told us they would be back and left. That was five years ago."
In February, Sodi, through his company Blackhead Consulting, issued summons against the Free State human settlements MEC, claiming R25m he said was owed to him as part of the R255m asbestos deal.
Sodi, who was released on R500,000 bail on Friday, was one of seven accused in the dock in the Bloemfontein magistrate's court. He claimed in court papers that the department of human settlements in the Free State had failed to honour its service-level agreement as it had only paid him R230m.
According to a February 2017 letter by former Free State human settlements head of department and now Sodi's co-accused, Nthimotse Mokhesi, the remaining R25m on the R255m project was suspended pending a public protector investigation into the asbestos tender. Sodi claimed that a reasonable time had lapsed and that his company should be paid the outstanding amount.
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Hawks head advocate Godfrey Lebeya told the Sunday Times a docket to investigate corruption allegations in the asbestos contract had been opened in February.
"Timing is important. We don't want to disturb the commission [on state capture chaired by deputy judge president Raymond Zondo] because you arrest a person whilst they are still testifying at the commission, they then say they can't attend the commission because they are busy preparing for the criminal case. The warrants were ready. We were waiting for the commission."
Special Investigating Unit head advocate Andy Mothibi said the SIU had been investigating the asbestos corruption case since the probe was proclaimed by President Cyril Ramaphosa last year.
There will now be "convergence" in the ongoing investigation's evidence and that gathered by Zondo commission investigators, now that the commission and law enforcement are allowed to collaborate.
The SIU, Mothibi said, will also now prioritise action against current and former officials of the Free State human settlements department, working to freeze their pensions and recover the money.
Mothibi said the SIU will "vigorously" oppose Sodi's claim against the department for the remaining R25m.
According to evidence before the commission and the indictment, the asbestos contract was illegally awarded as it did not go through proper procurement processes. Sodi and his slain business partner, Ignatius Mpambani, through a joint venture between Blackhead and Diamond Hill Trading, were granted a contract to conduct the same asbestos audit project in the Free State as Blackhead had done for the Gauteng human settlements department.
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Between 2014 and 2015 Blackhead was paid more than R200m "to do physical door-to-door counting, safe removal and disposal of asbestos-contaminated building rubble and asbestos sheets in various townships" in Gauteng. The contract was allegedly illegally extended to the Free State with the blessing of former national human settlements director-general Thabane Zulu, a close associate of Sodi - and now his co-accused.
Blackhead Consulting's bank records, which were examined by commission investigators, show there were numerous payments made to government officials at provincial and national level, to possibly politically exposed persons and to the ANC.
Most of the payments to the ANC referenced fundraising, T-shirts, ANC volunteers and ANC trucks. Others referenced ANC leader Paul Mashatile. There was also R6.4m paid in two tranches to a Nedbank account in 2014, referencing ANC leader Zweli Mkhize.
ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe said the ANC was not party to any crime and can't predetermine the outcome of current investigations. Asked whether Sodi's contributions amounted to state capture as they were apparently made so that he could continue to receive tenders, Mabe said: "Business donations are a norm in most democracies and they do not restrict anyone in terms of whether they do government business or strictly private sector business."
He said no payments were made to Mashatile's personal bank account. An amount of R371,553 was a donation to the Gauteng ANC, and a R112,118 payment to the University of Cape Town was for fees for an underprivileged student - not Mashatile's son, who also studies at the university.
Mkhize did not respond to questions. In a statement this week, he said: "I wish to categorically state I have never received any funds from Mr Sodi, either personally or through a third party intended for my personal benefit. I can confirm that during my tenure as the ANC treasurer-general, Mr Sodi, just like many other business persons, companies and organisations made donations to the ANC."
Spoor said: "What is clear from this audit is the condition of the roofs is unknown. The 'auditors' simply counted the number of asbestos-cemented roofs without inspecting them ... the audit is nothing more than a scam."
Professor David Rees, head of the National Institute for Occupational Health's occupational medicine and epidemiology division, said: "These roofs, put in decades ago, can decay and be damaged by weather like hail, so doing an audit is good, but it needs to be done properly. You cannot make a proper assessment just by walking around the house. An experienced person must examine the inside and outside."
Meanwhile, the estate agency marketing the Bryanston home listed in the charge sheet as Sodi's primary residence, said yesterday the property, 20 Mount Street, was owned by MJS Family Trust, and that it had pulled the property from its portfolio.
A spokesperson for Hamilton's Property Portfolio said: "We can confirm that we have removed this listing from our portfolio and suggest any further queries be directed to the MJS Family Trust."
- Additional reporting by Suthentira Govender
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