The parliament’s portfolio on land reform and rural development is considering roping in the Hawks and the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to probe Ingonyama Holdings, an entity it says has gone rogue and is refusing to cooperate and provide answers on financial matters.
This development comes after the committee recently received a presentation from the Ingonyama Trust Board (ITB) on Ingonyama Holdings, the official investment and commercial vehicle of the Ingonyama Trust, which was registered with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission on November 29, 2019, after receiving R41-million as seed funding.
The committee alleges that Sipho Ngwenya, the former chairperson of the ITB, and Lucas Mkhwanazi, its former CEO, are the directors of Ingonyama Holdings, and the entity has failed to account to the shareholder since its formation.
Ngwenya and Mkhwanazi are no longer members of the ITB and have allegedly refused to account to the board.
Negative exposure
The chairperson of the committee, parliamentarian Albert Mncwango from the IFP, said their insistence on being directors has obstructed legitimate shareholder governance and oversight.
During the board’s briefing, the committee learnt that Ingonyama Holdings managed the funds and continues to operate under the Ingonyama Trust’s name.
Due to negative exposure and a lack of accountability, the ITB decided to sever ties with Ingonyama Holdings.
Furthermore, the committee learnt that the R41-million loan is still unresolved and recovery is improbable.
Therefore, the ITB requested the committee to summon Ingonyama Holdings directors to account for Ingonyama Trust funds.
Lack of intervention
The committee also expressed its concern that the Department of Land Reform and Rural Development has made no clear intervention to assist the ITB in the current litigation and Ingonyama Holdings matter.
“Neither the minister nor the department has used their authority to bring in other state actors to deal with the matter,” the committee said.
Mncwango said the committee welcomed the recommendation from the ITB for the committee to consider initiating processes to subpoena Ingonyama Holdings directors to appear before the committee and account for their actions.
“Further, the committee would explore the route of requesting the president to sign a proclamation for the Hawks and the Special Investigating Unit to investigate the matter to deal with the issues.
“The fact that Mr Ngwenya could chair both the ITB and Ingonyama Holdings created a conflict of interest and blurred the lines of accountability,” Mncwango said.
When asked to comment on the issue by Sunday World, Ngwenya stated that he was in a meeting.
