ALLEGATIONS of defrauding gate fees at KwaZulu-Natal’s Ezemvelo Wildlife parks have come to light as senior managers appeared before the provincial parliament to address concerns regarding their performance.
The Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) heard claims that certain companies allegedly colluded in bidding for tenders from the entity.
CEO Sihle Mkhize informed the Members of the Provincial Legislature (MPL) that the entity had suspended CFO Nonhlanhla Khumalo due to charges stemming from an audit outcome, although he did not specify the charges.
Mkhize stated that the suspected criminal activities had been reported to the Serious Organised Crime Investigation, known as the Hawks, who assisted in registering the case with the police.
“There is a number of staff members facing criminal prosecution, but I don’t have that number on top of my head,” Mkhize said.
He noted that identifying all suspects would require the police to conclude their investigation. “If my memory serves well, there were less than 10 or five suspects,” he added.
The private security company responsible for collecting entrance fees reportedly made “under-collection”.
Mkhize declared the appointment of this service provider as irregular expenditure, stating that all payments made under contract number EZEMVELO 19/2017 would be recorded in the register of irregular expenditure.
He explained that the provincial government advised him that the entity could not blacklist unscrupulous companies, as that task falls under the Central Supplier Database.
“There is a process involved in blacklisting; you need to give them an opportunity, get their representation, and then submit that to the provincial treasurer,” he said.
His team is preparing to report service providers involved in misconduct. “The forensic investigations found a variety of them,” Mkhize noted.
However, he later mentioned that the investigations could not find sustainable evidence of collusion between staff members and a company.
“From the office of the premier’s investigation, I think there were two companies that needed to be blacklisted,” he said.
To prevent theft and irregular contractor appointments, the entity has appointed former Auditor-General employee Ebrahim Mulla, a chartered accountant, as the acting CFO.
“The department has also seconded another chartered accountant to sit in the senior finance position to help with some of those issues,” Mkhize explained.
Responding to MPL Lourens de Klerk’s complaint about Ezemvelo’s profitability, Mkhize stated that most profits generated were spent on conservation services.
“We raised approximately R300 million from accommodation, gate collection, and other activities,” he said.
De Klerk questioned the decision to outsource gatekeeping responsibilities to a private company instead of using Ezemvelo personnel. “You won’t make a profit if that is how you do business,” he argued, calling the outsourcing a serious mistake.
Defending his role, Mkhize stated that when he became CEO, the organisation was in chaos, necessitating the appointment of an administrator. “We are looking at the reconfiguration of the new organisation,” he said.
Ezemvelo primarily relies on funding from Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, and the national government.
“That is why we have to work on reconfiguration and determine the future of Ezemvelo,” Mkhize concluded.
bongani.hans@inl.co.za