This article appeared on the website of the Mail & Guardian on 5 February as well as in the Sunday Times of 5 February 2012. The full article can be read together with some interesting comments here (M&G) and also here (Sunday Times). DA and Didata in irregular tender deal The Democratic Alliance in Plettenberg Bay has allegedly given a company run by a resident in the area a R4.3-million short-term IT contract without a tender, the Sunday Times reported. The contract was given to Dimension Data (Didata), a global IT company bought by Japan’s NTT for R22-billion last year. The company’s chairperson was Jeremy Ord, a Plettenberg Bay resident. The DA took control of the Bitou municipality in May last year. After doing so, it fired IT supplier Lefatshe Technologies because its R10-million system did not work. The DA’s new mayor, Memory Booysen, said Ord then “offered to send a team down to Plett, at no cost, to evaluate our technology systems”, reported the Sunday Times. On December 11, the DA-led council requested a “deviation from the tender process” so it could award Didata the contract “to stabilise the IT environment at Bitou”. According to the newspaper, Bitou manager Terry Giliomee, in a letter to Booysen dated December 12, didn’t receive other quotations because “there was not enough time”. In a letter dated August 30 Bitou officials gave Lefatshe 90 days notice and said their contract would come to an end on December 31. Emails from DA councillor Johann Brummer to Bitou officials in December urged action to be taken to prevent problems at Plettenberg Bay’s Lookout restaurant. Remember that Lookout is a Plett icon and hang-out of preference for some very powerful people, like Jeremy Ord and others who have supported us generously,” Brummer wrote. What a great suprise that Jordan Hill-Lewis said that “the DA would never do a quid pro quo relationship with a donor.” Off course they are not now all of a sudden going to become honest and admit what they are up to. JEF would like to put the following challenge to Mr. Booysen and the DA in Bitou (knowing full well they will not respond, but hey, we’re going to say it in any case) – 1. How many contracts, appointments and/or tenders have been awarded since the DA took control of Bitou in May 2011? 2. How many of these contracts, appointments and/or tenders were NOT awarded by way of some deviation and followed the proper and full procurement process in an open and transparent way? If JEF was a gambling man, he’d be willing to bet not a single one. Which would be rather strange in itself if it were true that the exception (ie. deviation from the proper procedure) has become the rule to be used in making appointments in this DA lead municipality. JEF is very happy to see that the mainstream media has published a factual article that places the DA in a negative light. JEF is also happy and proud to have reported on this issue on 20 December 2011 already (see the post “6th Mayoral Newsletter elsewhere on this site). JEF hopes that this might start a culture of more unbiased reporting in the mainstream media! Share this: Email Print Facebook1 Twitter LinkedIn
Posted on: Sun, 25 Aug 2013 06:29:12 +0000
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