Army chief's decor war: Gen Mbatha’s R1m home splurge under investigation

A quarter of a million rands on carpets, R181,000 on curtains and more than R90,000 on paving. That’s what the South African Army spent on the posh Pretoria home occupied by its chief, Gen Lawrence Mbatha, a few months after he took office last year.

Mbatha is accused of benefiting from a R1m taxpayer-funded spree for renovations at his new home in Waterkloof, with a basketball hoop, netball hoop, new cupboards and remodelled bathrooms on the shopping list.

The state also bought Spider-Man-themed bedroom décor for a child’s room. 

Whistleblowers in the military handed the Sunday Times a stack of evidence, including procurement documents, which show the extent of the extravagant renovations on Mbatha’s house, which was previously occupied by another army general.

It is in one of Pretoria’s most expensive neighbourhoods, where homes are on sale for up to R19m.

While the army does not deny the money was spent, it said Mbatha was not involved in the spending or approval process.

“The VVIP [very very important person] official is not in any way or form involved in these [internal procurement and approval] processes and procedures,” it said in response to questions. It also said the matter would be referred for investigation.

Mbatha is directly in charge of budgets and operations of the army division of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), which have come under severe pressure in recent years due to cuts.

In May, defence & military veterans minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula expressed concern in parliament about a R15bn budget cut which she said was affecting the army’s operations.

Army documents show that in July last year, R15,000 was approved to install a basketball hoop, net and backing board and a netball hoop in Mbatha’s garden. The taxpayer also paid for two balls specifically for those sports.

The basketball equipment cost R6,899 and the ball R1,890. The netball hoop cost R2,250 and the ball R1,550.

The installation bill was R1,900. Online price comparisons show a wall-mounted basketball hoop can cost as little as R700 while an average NBA Spalding basketball can cost as little as R300. A netball can be bought for as little as R200.

A senior army official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said: “This is clearly an abuse of state resources. How does one justify buying basketball hoops and netball stuff for his children with state money?”

According to the insiders, Mbatha’s wife allegedly went to the Oriental Plaza in Fordsburg, Johannesburg, with army officials to buy curtains which cost the state more than R181,000.

Documents show that the state paid R7,000 for 9m of fabric for a “Spider-Man” bedroom’s curtains and lace, R7,000 for a “basketball” bedroom and R9,000 for a girls’ bedroom. The most expensive curtains, however, were for the main bedroom and the dining room, which cost a combined R60,000. In other areas of the house, the state coughed up R82,000 more for curtains.

Another senior officer said: “The chief is responsible for the curtains for his personal budget because there was no need to replace curtains as the ones that were there were in pristine condition.”

The army also added R260,000 to the bill by installing new carpets, and internal reports include motivations for them to be fitted urgently.

“Funds are required for installation of carpet by entrance area and living area at the chief army’s house Waterkloof as a matter of urgency. Reason being the carpet was running short, so it needed another extension carpet … Funds are required for purchasing a carpet with an emblem in the house of the chief army in Waterkloof. The emblem must be installed at the entrance of the chief army house,” reads one of the documents.

Senior army officials said most of the costs were inflated and many of the renovations were unnecessary.

“A carpet installation at a price of R100,000 is rudely abnormal, being done only in the lounge. The state is surely being defrauded,” said another senior official.

“The [price] is questionable and utterly ludicrous given the space in the chief’s living room. To make matters worse, a second installation was done in the same area.”

To replace and install new cupboards cost R97,690; a new shower and six toilet paper holders cost R31,942; two new baths and basins cost R63,156; and paving R90,728.

Other major renovations, which included fixing sewerage pipes, leaking roofs, electrical rewiring, installation of air-conditioning units and other items cost the state more than R205,000.

“The document indicates that a camera was installed at a price of about R82,300 in the house of the chief. That is not true. Instead, a camera was repaired,” said a senior army official.

Questions were sent to Mbatha, who did not respond. The army did not respond specifically to detailed questions, including why the renovations had been undertaken.

However, in a statement, Brig-Gen Mafi Mgobhozi said: “The SANDF has an office of the inspector-general, primarily responsible to ensure there is accountability and compliance in all acquisition matters in the SANDF ... Should there be any suspicion or proof of alleged corruption [or] mismanagement of funds, a full-on investigation is launched.”