Pretoria - ActionSA wants the conduct of its two former City of Tshwane MMCs implicated in a dodgy land acquisition deal involving five properties in Kameeldrift 298-JR to be investigated.
The City of Tshwane wanted to buy the properties at a cost of R2.5 million.
MMC Andre le Roux for economic development and spatial planning and Kgosietsile Kgosiemang of human settlements allegedly had a secret meeting with land sellers to escalate the property price from R2.5m to R3m.
Blowing the whistle on the secret meeting was one of the land sellers, who enquired from municipal officials in charge of the property acquisition process whether the City was willing to pay R3m as suggested by the MMCs.
The pair are implicated in a letter written to municipal group head of human settlements Nonto Memela by property department group head Verusha Morgan.
In part, the letter said the group property department received a formal request from the human settlements department to facilitate acquisition of five properties in Kameeldrift.
As part of strengthening the City’s negotiation processes, the group property department obtained independent market valuations on some of the properties.
Senior officials from both departments, according to the letter, had engaged on the acquisitions on February 3 and made key decisions “to fast-track and conclude the various acquisition transactions”.
It was alleged that following the engagement, both MMCs met the sellers “and, among other things, a discussion seems to have included consensus on the purchase prices”.
The letter read: “The independent market valuation for this specific property is R2 570 000. In the absence of a full valuation report, it is not apparent how the value of R3m was made, and this is therefore deemed to be overpricing on this property.”
ActionSA national chairperson, Michael Beaumont, said the party’s Senate met on Friday night and deliberated on a complaint that had arisen about the conduct of the two MMCs.
“The ActionSA’s Senate deliberated on the matter and recognised the challenge of the information required for investigation lying more readily with the personnel and records of the City of Tshwane. Accordingly, ActionSA will write to the acting mayor and speaker requesting the City to investigate the conduct of the two MMCs expeditiously, and that ActionSA be afforded access to information arising from this investigation should any steps be necessary.”
Beaumont said ActionSA called for a multi-party coalition meeting at which coalition partners were briefed about these concerns and the action steps resolved by ActionSA’s Senate.
“Coalition partners expressed their appreciation for the efforts to consult and for the steps taken to ensure that this multi-party coalition acts in a manner beyond repute.”
He said the party would continue to investigate the matter and act transparently both with its coalition partners and the residents of Tshwane.
On Tuesday, the EFF pressed charges of fraud against the two MMCs at the Brooklyn police station.
EFF regional leader in in Tshwane, Obakeng Ramabodu, said the EFF wanted the police to investigate why the two MMCs meddled in the city’s supply chain management.
He accused the pair of conniving behind the back of municipal officials to raise the price for a piece of property from R2.5 m to R3m.
Pretoria News