“Construction mafia” bosses in KwaZulu-Natal are demanding R5m for foiling an elaborate plot to bomb the Durban City Hall, reservoirs, transport infrastructure and other key installations during the 2021 riots.
And they say top ANC officials are pressuring the council to make the payment out of public funds, which the city is refusing to do. The eThekwini municipality says no such arrangement was made.
Bhamuza Mnyandu, a reformed former criminal and president of the Amadelangokubona Business Forum, insists he is owed R5m.
“They [rioters] were given a mandate to bring the city to its knees. I had to come to the rescue as I know that we survive on tenders and also we do projects with eThekwini. If I had let that happen, where would we find our next source of income?” said Mnyandu.
“We were risking our lives while they were sleeping and living cosy in their homes. But we continued as we hoped for what we would get after our hard-earned work.”
Amadelangokubona is a group of “tenderpreneurs” who have organised themselves into a forum that demands a 30% share from contractors working for government and private companies in Durban.
But this is not limited to Durban. Experts say the disruption of construction projects has cost the economy more than R63bn since 2019.
While public works minister and former KZN premier Sihle Zikalala has taken a hard line on construction mafias, even stating that there was a proposal that the army be deployed at building sites, senior KZN ANC officials are said to have played a role in setting up a meeting between Amadelangokubona leaders and city council officials, leaning on them to pay.
The row casts fresh light on the scourge that has been identified by law enforcement and business as an impediment to infrastructure development and maintenance and its relationship with the ruling party.
It also provides some insight into the ANC’s factional battles and how they played out in the days that KZN erupted in an orgy of violence and looting after former president Jacob Zuma’s arrest.
It was at the meeting facilitated by the ANC that the city allegedly caved in to party pressure to pay the group R5m out of municipal funds to protect key installations.
The city is denying such an agreement exists.
But Mnyandu is insisting on the payment, saying his group alone saved the city.
“During July civil unrest in 2021 in KZN, there was information leaked to me that there was a group from the political battles between two groups of former president Jacob Zuma and of President Cyril Ramaphosa. They were sent to bomb all the assets of eThekwini metro. It is alleged that group was given R36m to execute the plan of vandalising city properties.”
He said that at 11pm on July 10 2021 he received a call from a person identifying himself as one of those who were paid to destroy eThekwini metro infrastructure.
We were risking our lives while they were sleeping and living cosy in their homes. But we continued as we hoped for what we would get after our hard-earned work
— Bhamuza Mnyandu
“We were busy making sure that Check Save supermarkets at Umlazi were not touched as they were our responsibility. The person asked me if they destroy those areas [about which they had received advance warming], would they be touching our territory as they know we are doing various projects with the municipality.”
He said he called eThekwini head of security management Dumisani Bhengu after police and security companies had deserted the locations. Bhengu referred the Sunday Times to the metro's communications team when approached for comment.
When the city refused to pay, saying there was no such deal, Mnyandu said he asked ANC leaders to intervene on his behalf.
ANC leaders then summoned top eThekwini metro officials to a meeting held at the ANC provincial offices, Pixley Ka Isaka Seme House in the Durban CBD, to discuss settling the dispute.
Details of the meeting were revealed to the Sunday Times by Mnyandu, who expressed his frustration with the municipality's delay in effecting the payment despite an ultimatum from ANC leaders.
It took place on the second week of June.
Mnyandu says ANC leaders instructed top municipal officials, including city manager Musa Mbhele, to make the payment.
ANC provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo this week confirmed meeting Mnyandu once. He said he referred Mnyandu to ANC eThekwini regional secretary Musa Nciki, who facilitated a meeting between Mnyandu and city officials.
“Because [Mnyandu] solicited the intervention of the ANC, I then directed the regional secretary [Nciki] to facilitate the meeting ... which ... did take place with the city manager included. That was the end of the ANC role ... What happened to his claims would be better known and responded to by the city itself,” said Mtolo.
Mtolo said the ANC has no relationship with Amadelangokubona.
At that meeting a decision was taken that the city settle the amount as demanded by Mnyandu. Also present were Mbhele, Bhengu, CFO Sandile Mnguni and speaker of council Thabani Nyawose.
The reason that made me to open a case against him is that I know these people are evil. He will be killed by his enemies and I will be a prime suspect
— Bhamuza Mnyandu, president of the Amadelangokubona Business Forum
Insiders confirmed Mnyandu's version, saying the ANC delegation sympathised with Amadelangokubona and the meeting agreed that payment be made.
The dispute has now escalated to a war of words between Mnyandu and Mbhele, who had a heated text message exchange two weeks ago after the municipality missed a June 28 deadline to settle the R5m. Mnyandu threatened Mbhele for ignoring his calls, while the city manager dismissed Mnyandu's threats, saying he was not intimidated.
Mnyandu said when he tried to reach the city manager for a follow-up, Mbhele showed him the middle finger.
“Mbhele was arrogant towards me. I got a shocking response from him saying he is busy with serious stuff as his house was washed away during recent KZN floods. He won't discuss work matters while he is at home dealing with his crisis,” added Mnyandu.
“After these threatening messages I received a message from the men in city’s intelligence. [They] asked me why I am threatening Mbhele? I sent them the messages where he was swearing at me. I heard that he opened a case against me. I also opened a case of intimidation three days ago in Chatsworth police station.”
Mnyandu alleges Mbhele threatened him during a telephone call, saying he would send people to kill him.
“The reason that made me to open a case against him is that I know these people are evil. He will be killed by his enemies and I will be a prime suspect.”
South African Police Service KZN spokesperson Col Robert Netshiunda confirmed that a case of crimen injuria had been opened. “It's about two people who exchanged words over a phone call.”
eThekwini municipality said this week: “The facts in this matter are in dispute and a meeting has been scheduled to clarify matters. eThekwini never instructed any business forum to guard its assets. One of the forum [members] approached the city to be compensated for efforts they had put in to guard some of city’s buildings.”
Nciki had not responded to questions at the time of going to press.
Nyawose confirmed attending meetings with Mnyandu. “I've attended many meetings with them, but there are many issues that are being discussed. There's no specific issue like that that I remember.”
When asked whether the forum was contracted to protect the city's infrastructure during the riots, Nyawose said: “Baba, I've answered. We confirm, no.”
Mnyandu insists he is owed money because of an agreement he reached with Bhengu when the riots happened.
He said he had recruited his men and contacts from hostels, taxi associations around Durban and business forums to protect the city's assets.
“These listed assets to be bombed and destroyed were the Durban City Hall, all city fleets, depots, water reservoirs from Umlazi, Umbumbulu, Amanzimtoti, Umgababa and Umkhomazi, and others,” Mnyandu said.
Mnyandu said his group secured 94 municipality sites around Umlazi, Umbumbulu, Winkelspriut, Doonside to Illovo, Umgababa to Umkomaas, kwaMakhutha, Isipingo and South Region.
He said security companies appointed to provided services in those key areas for the metro had pulled out, fearing for their safety as the situation was worsening.
“No-one was on the sites; they were vulnerable and empty,” he said.
Additional reporting by Kgothatso Madisa
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