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The Democratic Alliance in the Eastern Cape welcomed Friday’s arrest of nine people, including politicians and business people, for fraud, corruption, and money-laundering.
Among those arrested was the Special Advisor to the Premier, Zandisile Qupe, who has since requested a “leave of absence”.
The accused are Mhleleli Mlungisi Tshamase, Walter Shaidi, Fareed Fakir, Rukaard Abrahams, Andrea Joleen Wessels, Nadia Gerwel, Dawid Eduard Le Roux, Zandisile Qupe, and Thando Ngcolomba.
Former UDM mayor, Mongameli Bobani, who was laid to rest on Friday after succumbing to Covid-19, was the 10th accused.
The arrests relate to the 2010 Integrated Public Transport System project and also includes six business entities which were also charged.
The Hawks said that the money laundering exceeds an actual loss of R56.4 million while the potential loss would have been around R200 million.
The accused were granted bail ranging from R5 000 to R100 000 and the matter postponed to March next year.
DA provincial leader, Nqaba Bhanga, said it was the former DA mayor, Atholl Trollip, who had laid charges in this regard.
“These arrests are the first positive movements in this long-standing debacle, and we hope this serves as a clarion call to the Metro to start implementing the requests by National Treasury with regards to issues within the IPTS,” he said.
In October of last year, National Treasury threatened to recall R3 billion of the IPTS conditional grant allocations if the recommendations made in a forensic investigation report into the beleaguered transport system were not implemented.
Bhanga said the IPTS was always intended as a means of improving the lives of the people of Nelson Mandela Bay.
