Public warned of tender scams

Businesspeople in the Chris Hani district have been warned about municipal tender scams that have been recently doing the rounds.

Chris Hani District Municipality (CHDM) spokesperson Bulelwa Ganyaza said they have been made aware of a tender scam involving fake appointments of service providers for the construction of a water supply reticulation scheme in villages.

The scammers are sending email messages with CHDM contact details to authenticate this scam and deceive unsuspecting recipients. The district municipality is looking into the matter and will be reporting it to the South African Police Service for investigation.” Ganyaza urged the public to be vigilant and not to fall victim to such fraud.

“The district follows a strict supply chain management process in accordance with the supply chain management policy and the Municipal Finance Management Act when procuring goods and services. The business fraternity is also urged to report any suspicious activities on the national anti-corruption hotline 0800 701 701 (toll free number) or law authorities.”

Meanwhile, Emalahleni Local Municipality spokesperson Luthando Nqumkana issued an alert of a fraudster claiming to be a municipal manager, who sends emails to service providers and prospective bidders for the awarding of tenders in exchange for money.

Members of the public are further reminded that tenders and other municipal programmes are advertised, and processes are followed according to the prescribed legislation. On tender processes we comply with the supply chain management and other relevant legislations.”

Nqumkana further added that: “Soliciting bribes is a crime that can be reported to the law enforcement agencies, whether the suspected perpetrators are fraudsters outside or from within the institution. As we receive huge call volumes questioning about this, we do not want to speculate any further other than to wait for the outcomes of the investigation from the South African Police Service.”

He said the matter had been reported to the police for investigation. “We are of the view that people might be tempted to cooperate with these fraudsters. The office of the municipal manager and the information technology are working tirelessly to trace the origins of the said emails. We humbly ask that any member of the community or any service provider who receives such emails to immediately contact law enforcement agency (SAPS) or report such to the anti-corruption toll free line- 0800 701701.”

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