The DA in Tshwane has opened a criminal case against deputy mayor Eugene Modise after an investigative report revealed he allegedly benefited unlawfully from a multimillion-rand municipal contract without declaring his interest in a company doing business with the city.
The case was opened at the Brooklyn police station in Pretoria on Wednesday.
A report tabled during the Tshwane council meeting last week revealed that Modise was in breach of the municipal code of conduct. The breach stems from his alleged financial benefit through Triotic Protection Services, a company that holds a significant multimillion-rand contract with the City of Tshwane.
When questioned by investigators, Modise reportedly claimed he had sold his shares in the company through an instalment sale agreement, but he failed to produce any documentation to substantiate this claim.
Speaking outside the police station, the DA’s Cilliers Brink criticised Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya for not taking action against Modise.
“Moya has not fired him despite him holding the crucial finance portfolio, and the ANC’s coalition partners have voted to protect him from being removed as a councillor,” Brink said.
He accused Moya of shielding her deputy, saying: “We’ve seen that the accountability is not going to come from Moya. She has behaved almost as if she’s an honorary comrade, a co-opted cadre in the way that she has protected Modise. It is a shameful example and it is one which we will actively seek to overturn.”
Brink said the party had identified issues within the report that it believed had criminal implications, specifically potential fraud and possible contraventions of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act (PRECCA).
To ensure the case is thoroughly investigated, the DA has approached the private prosecution unit of AfriForum.
“We know that so many of these complaints go lost, missing, die a slow death if they aren’t actively pursued, and this is what we’re trying to achieve. There has to be accountability in this matter.”
ActionSA rejected the charges laid against Modise, describing the allegations as a misrepresentation of facts.
“The DA is presenting allegations as if they are confirmed findings. This is misleading,” ActionSA national chairperson Michael Beaumont said.
“The forensic investigation did not make findings of corruption. It focused on disclosure obligations under the Code of Conduct for Councillors. These issues must be dealt with through the established legal and procedural mechanisms of council, not through political commentary that seeks to distort what the report actually says.”
The party rejected claims that Moya is protecting Modise from accountability.
“ActionSA has no interest in shielding any individual from accountability and does not speak for the ANC — a party with whom we have voiced strong opposition against countless acts of wrongdoing over the years.
“Our commitment is to ensure that accountability is achieved through transparent, lawful and responsible mechanisms that uphold the integrity of council.”
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