Competition Commission in hot water once again
The entity is back in the firing line over dodgy procurement practices but Patel’s support is unwavering
The auditor-general’s (AG) finding that R128m of the competition commission’s 2017/2018 expenditure was irregular has put it back under the spotlight. It also raises the question as to why economic development minister Ebrahim Patel — who declined to institute an inquiry after an FM exposé in July – continues to praise the commission. The FM reported that all was not well at the commission after being tipped off by a whistleblower about bubbling dissatisfaction among its staff, the legal fraternity and the business community. Sandton lawyers alleged that the Bryanston firm Ndzabandzaba Attorneys, run by a former commission employee, was being handed a disproportionate amount of cartel work, while at the commission’s Pretoria head office, allegations swirled about nepotism and favouritism in appointments. There were also mutterings over the commission’s top four executives being chauffeured by bodyguards in a fleet of BMWs. A spate of court judgments against the commission — for lyin...
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