Johannesburg – At least three companies which have questionable relations with government have stalls at the ANC's 54th elective conference – MultiChoice, Sasstec and Sharks Security Services.
On Monday afternoon, President Jacob Zuma went on a walkabout in the area where companies have their stalls, with the media in tow.
As the media formed what can only be described as a rugby maul, waiting on a few words (no questions) from Zuma, Roy Moodley stood calmly on the other side, in front of Sharks Protection Services' stall. By the time Zuma arrived, he was nowhere to be seen, and when the media were herded out of the hall, the stall was completely empty, except for a box.
Moodley is one of the key figures in Jacques Pauw's book The President's Keepers, which the State Security Agency tried to have withdrawn from the shelves.
In his book, Pauw revealed that Moodley had paid Zuma a salary of R1m a month for four months into Zuma’s first tenure as president in 2009. This additional income was not declared to the South African Revenue Service (SARS), Pauw wrote.
On Friday, the same day Moodley was pictured with ANC deputy secretary general Jessie Duarte.
News24 revealed he had received questionable "fees" from a contractor to the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa).
This fuelled longstanding suspicions that Moodley had been acting as a gatekeeper to lucrative Prasa contracts, much like the Guptas had allegedly been doing at state-owned companies, like Eskom and Transnet.
Sharks Protection Services is one of the eight security companies which, for the 10th successive year, had the eThekwini metro council roll over a R50m-a-month security tender under a controversial emergency supply chain management policy.
This means that these companies that guard municipal property in Durban continue to benefit a decade after their contracts formally expired.
One of the stalls Zuma visited, in view of the media, was that of MultiChoice – the firm whose executives wrote government policy for one of his Cabinet members, then communications minister Faith Muthambi.
The ad hoc committee that investigated the SABC board raised their concerns about the public broadcaster's deal with MultiChoice, which is one of the "questionable contracts" the Special Investigations Unit is now investigating.
In November, News24 revealed that MultiChoice had made a questionable payment of R25m to the Guptas' controversial ANN7 channel, according to the #GuptaLeaks. In addition, MultiChoice increased its annual payment to ANN7 from R50m to R141m.
It also emerged that, before MultiChoice signed the agreement, Muthambi had forwarded detailed suggestions about government decisions affecting the broadcasting sector to the Guptas and Duduzane Zuma, the president’s son.
The documents were penned by Clarissa Mack, MultiChoice's then-head of regulatory and policy affairs.
'Completely corrupt'
Muthambi also moved away from government and ANC policy regarding the encryption of set-top boxes, in a way that favoured MultiChoice.
Another company with a stall at the conference is Sasstec's SA Fence and Gate.
In June, then commissioner of correctional services Zach Modise appeared twice before Scopa to account for irregular and wasteful expenditure of R494m - accumulated in the 2011/2012 financial year.
Included in the R494m was a contract with Integritron for an integrated inmate management system (IIMS). Integritron is part of the Sasstec Group, as is SA Fence & Gate. Combined, these two companies have contracts with the department to the tune of R2bn.
Members of Scopa described the IIMS contract as "completely corrupt".
Modise's car was spotted outside the house of Sasstec director Geoff Greyling on November 2, 2015. In July, Greyling announced that he would take leave, while Sasstec investigated the allegations.
MultiChoice and Sasstec were among the sponsors of Friday evening's "gala dinner" with Zuma.
* News24 is published by Media24. Both Media24 and MultiChoice are Naspers companies.
