Posts

The looters living it up from Prasa millions

Image: Ashraf Hendricks/GroundUp By Ra’eesa Pather and Qiqa Nkomo for Open SecretsFirst published on GroundUp This is the second in a series of articles on corruption in Prasa’s dealings with front company Swifambo Rail Leasing. It focuses on the activities of Makhensa Mabunda and Auswell Mashaba, the men who orchestrated the purchase of unusable locomotives Read more >

The European company that profited from corruption at Prasa

Image: Flickr/GovernmentZA By Ra’eesa Pather and Qiqa Nkomo for Open SecretsFirst published on GroundUp In 2012, a deal was struck that contributed to the near collapse of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa). The Swifambo deal for 70 locomotives led to billions of rands in losses for Prasa and accelerated the decline of Read more >

SIU authorised to investigate Home Affairs and PRASA

Source: Special Investigating Unit President Cyril Ramaphosa has signed two proclamations authorising the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to investigate allegations of serious maladministration in the affairs of Department of Home Affairs and Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA), and improper or unlawful conduct by officials or employees of the State entities, and to recover Read more >

Siyangena case dismissal is a victory for Prasa’s corruption-busters

First published on GroundUp Today (1 November), the Supreme Court of Appeal dismissed, with costs, the appeal by Siyangena Technologies, a corrupt contractor for the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa). R5.5-billion of public money was on the line. Siyangena was shameless in its corruption. The company circumvented procurement rules, tailored Prasa contracts to Read more >

Activists protest against Prasa corruption

By Mary-Anne Gontsana and Katherine Liu First published on GroundUp Simo Kwepe was 16 when he was killed on the Cape Town Metrorail line last month. Keeno Abib died last year after he fell off a moving train while trying to get away from gangsters trying to rob him. It’s deaths such as these that Read more >

TI releases governance principles for SOEs

South Africa’s state-owned enterprises (SOEs) are not what could be described as the pride of the nation. The likes of Eskom, the Passenger Rail Association of South Africa (Prasa), the South African Post Office (SAPO), South African Airways (SAA), the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), and others have become a national embarrassment rather than a Read more >

What’s happening in the Prasa case?

If ever there was a campaign for how not to run a parastatal, the Passenger Rail Association of South Africa (Prasa) would be the poster child. In the current narrative of how the country’s state-owned entities can be better run to avoid multi-million rand losses due to poor management, Prasa is one of the talking Read more >