SAP Ordered to Pay $28M to S. Africa Corruption Watchdog
The SIU has powers to take civil action and refer evidence to prosecutors over any wrongdoing stemming from its probes across government.
PRETORIA, South Africa— Systems Applications Products has been ordered by South Africa's Special Tribunal to pay the Special Investigating Unit 500 million rand ($28 million) within a week over two irregular contracts with the state power utility Eskom, writes Winston Mwale.
The order issued Tuesday stems from a settlement agreement reached by the anti-corruption SIU and SAP on the validity of a 2013 enabling agreement worth over 1 billion rand and a smaller 2016 cloud services deal with Eskom.
The tribunal declared the contracts constitutionally invalid and set them aside, saying Eskom incurred fruitless and wasteful expenditures by failing to follow proper tender procedures.
SAP was found to have paid kickbacks from the Eskom contracts to a company linked to the Guptas, wealthy businessmen accused of looting state funds under former president Jacob Zuma.
The order allows the SIU to recover financial losses by state institutions due to graft. It doesn't absolve SAP or any individuals from potential prosecution, the SIU said.
President Cyril Ramaphosa authorized the SIU's investigation into corruption at Eskom in 2018 during a judiciary inquiry into widespread looting of state resources during Zuma's tenure from 2009 to 2018.
The SIU has powers to take civil action and refer evidence to prosecutors over any wrongdoing stemming from its probes across government.