New kickback allegations against state security boss Bongani Bongo

12 November 2017 - 00:00 By TOM NKOSI and MZILIKAZI wa AFRIKA
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President Jacob Zuma congratulates Bongani Bongo after he was sworn in as State Security Minister on 18 October 2017.
President Jacob Zuma congratulates Bongani Bongo after he was sworn in as State Security Minister on 18 October 2017.
Image: GCIS

A portion of a R37-million payment used to fund a government land deal in Mpumalanga was allegedly used to build a house for State Security Minister Bongani Bongo.

The deal was funded by Mpumalanga’s human settlements department in 2011, when Bongo was the department’s head of legal services. The conveyancers in the deal paid R1.5-million into the account of company belonging to Bongo’s wife, which was allegedly used to build the home in Nelspruit.

This follows reports in the Sunday Times last week that the same conveyancers had paid R300,000 towards a new BMW X5 for Bongo.

The new allegations are contained in a forensic audit by a Special Investigating Unit team.

Bongo was appointed state security minister last month in a Cabinet reshuffle, when the investigation into him was already well under way.

The audit shows that Bongo allegedly:

  • Received R1.5-million cash on May 13 2011 deposited by law firm Singwane and Partners into the bank account of Nkgalema Properties, a company solely owned by his wife, Sandile Nkosi, and that the money was used to build a house in Nelspruit;
  • Received R300,000 cash on December 3 2011, deposited into the bank account of Nkgalema Properties;
  • Received R200,000 paid into the bank account of Peter Rosner, who was the builder of the house. Rosner died during a Hawks investigation into the matter;
  • Drove around in a luxury Audi RS 5 that Singwane and Partners paid R300,000 towards at Audi Sandton on April 15 2011. The car was registered in the name of his younger brother, Joel Bongo; and,
  • Had sole use of a luxury BMW X5 that Mpumalanga businessman Harrington Dhlamini paid R300,000 towards to Northcliff BMW. The vehicle was also registered in Joel’s name.

Read more in the Sunday Times.

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