LIVE FEED: #StateCaptureInquiry May 23, 2019

State Capture Commission of Inquiry chairperson Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo. Picture: Karen Sandison African News Agency (ANA)

State Capture Commission of Inquiry chairperson Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo. Picture: Karen Sandison African News Agency (ANA)

Published May 23, 2019

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Johannesburg - The Zondo commission will on Thursday morning continue hearing evidence of corruption at state-owned enterprise Transnet. 

Former Transnet engineer Francis Callard is expected to continue with his testimony for a third day. 

He previously told the commission about his involvement in drawing up a business case for Transnet to acquire locomotives, he said that business was later changed by the SOE executives to the detriment of the organisation. 

He drew up the business case and keeping in line with the needs, specifications and the urgency recommended that Mitsui & Co, a Japanese company, be selected. 

He said his recommendations for Mitsui & Co was that the company already supplied Transnet and would be able to provide the locomotives with specific requirements with urgency. 

Callard said he submitted his business case in October 2013. 

He said when he eventually received the business case document back in early 2014 when he was asked to add slides by former supply manager Lindiwe Mdletshe, he noticed that the memorandum had been changed and would favour the confinement to China South Rail (CSR), a Chinese based company. 

Callard said he was taken aback by the changes which excluded a number of important specifications which motivated for the confinement to Mitsui & Co. 

He said he could not say with certainty who had made changes to the business case, but he suspected former Transnet CFO, and head of group procurement at the time, Garry Pita had made the amendments. 

On Monday, he explained that there were various omissions from the business case which he believes allowed for the ballooning of the costs of the deal. The original case had placed at R38.16 billion, and this had also taken into account the foreign exchange price escalation. 

The business case that was presented to the board to approve had been made to appear as if the foreign exchange escalation had not been considered which was irresponsible. 

The inquiry resumes at 9am.

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