ROB ROSE: Telkom’s short straw
For reasons yet to be properly explained, Telkom froze payments to a small Pretoria supplier — and the owner sold his home to stay afloat
If 2018 has brought home one brutal truth, it’s that the behavioural gap between the private sector and public sector isn’t as vast as people used to think. Corruption? Sure, you can find that in Nkandla, but you can just as easily find it in Steinhoff’s accounts. Lying liars? Again, you can pick Malusi Gigaba or Bathabile Dlamini, or you could look at the KPMG accountants who "audited" VBS Mutual Bank. Another charge is routinely levelled at the government: refusing to pay what it owes, and stomping on small businesses in the process. Again, it isn’t just the government doing this. Take Telkom, which, court papers allege, folded its arms and refused to pay the final chunk of a R41.2m contract it struck with Pretoria business owner Nico Oosthuizen. Telkom apparently still owes more than R6m. Oosthuizen has been around the block, having begun his career 48 years ago as a technical support engineer at Control Data Corp. But his fortunes took a turn for the worse in July 2016, when his...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.