Four COVID-19 tender challenges are dismissed

The Special Tribunal has denied four different appeals from COVID-19 tender corruption accused companies in the Digital Vibes case, including billionaire Hamilton Ndlovu, Caledon River Properties, and LNG Scientific.

In the Digital Vibes case, All Out Trading, Tusokuhle Farming, Azwakele Trading and Projects, Cedar Falls, Sirela Trading, and Sithokozile Khaliphile Mkhize asked the court for permission to appeal in order to separate their cases from the main review application of the controversial R150 million Digital Vibes communications tender.

Also submitting an application was the colorful businessman Hamilton Ndlovu.

Ndlovu sought an appeal that would have permitted him to dispute the same court’s judgment requiring him to reimburse at least R158 million he got from 19 National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) PPE tenders.

In the initial ruling, the tribunal rendered a blistering verdict, labeling Ndlovu the “mastermind” of a “fraudulent procurement scheme” and accusing him of “channeling cash derived from the challenged payments through these firms.”

LNG Scientific, which won at least R113 million in PPE bids, filed an application for permission to appeal the Gauteng Health Department’s decision to seek to the Tribunal to have the expensive tenders reviewed and voided.
At the height of the COVID-19 outbreak, the Special Tribunal rejected an appeal by the two corporations awarded the disputed R41 million border.

Caledon River Properties and ProfTeam CC were forced to return any profits made on the project.
The court ruled that all four appeals that were denied might be appealed to the supreme court. – SAnews.gov.za