South Africa’s top police officer summoned over $20m Health Tender scandal

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South Africa’s police commissioner Fannie Masemola was summoned to appear in court next month.Photographer: Luba Lesolle/Gallo Images/Getty Images

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South African prosecutors said Wednesday they had summoned the head of police over a $20-million health tender, in a case that has rocked the country and pulled in a dozen other officers.

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National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola has been served with a summons to appear in court next month, said Kaizer Kganyago, spokesman for South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority.

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The case centres on a now-cancelled 2024 police tender for health services awarded to businessman Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala, who is suspected of links to organised crime.

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It was not immediately clear what charges Masemola will face, but a police spokeswoman confirmed he will honour the April 21 court appearance.

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Fifteen people, including a dozen police officers and a director of Matlala’s company, were charged on Wednesday on suspicion of corruption in the awarding of the tender.

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All of them — except Matlala, who had already received 50 million rand ($2.9 million) before the contract was terminated — were granted bail.

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Described locally as a “tenderpreneur”, a term referring to individuals who have made fortunes through government contracts, Matlala shot to national prominence after a regional police chief accused the force and South Africa’s police minister of drabbling in criminality.

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The allegations triggered the minister’s removal from office and a formal commission of inquiry was set up by the president, turning the saga into a national spectacle.

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Broadcast daily on television and radio, the hearings have become a closely followed saga for South Africans.

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A separate parliamentary inquiry is also probing claims that senior officers had corrupt ties with crime bosses and took money for favours.

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Matlala was arrested in May last year in connection with the 2023 attempt on his ex-partner Thobejane’s life.

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His name had already surfaced in the Tembisa Hospital scandal, where more than 2.2 billion rand ($129 million) was allegedly siphoned off.

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The Tembisa hospital case cost whistleblower Babita Deokaran her life in 2021, when she was shot nine times outside her home.

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