Share

Hawks swoop on two Free State municipalities in R56m corruption probe

The Hawks' serious corruption investigating unit on Friday concluded search-and-seizure operations at the Dihlabeng and Maluti-a-Phofung local municipalities in the Free State.

According to a statement, the operation started on Wednesday.

"[The operations] come in the wake of investigations in relation to alleged maladministration, fraud and corruption at the municipalities which is valued at about R56m.

"Several documents which will assist in the ongoing probe were seized from different offices," said Hawks spokesperson Captain S'fiso Nyakane in the statement.

Nyakane said no arrests had been made.  

The embattled ANC-led municipalities are among several in the province that face power cuts after running into debt of billions.

Eskom extended the deadline for payment in August.

Intervention

Dihlabeng municipality owes Eskom R192 972 097.83, while the Maluti-a-Phofung municipality owes Eskom R2 627 895 261.10.

In June, Dihlabeng Mayor Lindiwe Kambule Makhalema was suspended after calling President Cyril Ramaphosa a "sellout" in a closed Facebook group.

In February, the Maluti-a-Phofung municipality was placed under a section 139 (1)(b) intervention.

This followed protests by aggrieved municipal workers over unpaid salaries.

Nyakane would not comment further, saying "any further communication on this matter will be limited pending further investigations".

Attempts to get hold of the municipalities were unsuccessful. 

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should the Proteas pick Faf du Plessis for the T20 World Cup in West Indies and the United States in June?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Faf still has a lot to give ...
67% - 939 votes
No! It's time to move on ...
33% - 456 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.81
+1.1%
Rand - Pound
23.52
+1.2%
Rand - Euro
20.13
+1.3%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.29
+0.9%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+2.4%
Platinum
922.60
-0.3%
Palladium
962.00
-2.9%
Gold
2,340.49
+0.4%
Silver
27.32
-0.4%
Brent Crude
89.01
+1.1%
Top 40
69,358
+1.3%
All Share
75,371
+1.4%
Resource 10
62,363
+0.4%
Industrial 25
103,903
+1.3%
Financial 15
16,161
+2.2%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE