A little-known construction company may prove to be Sol Plaatje municipality’s “untouchable” head honcho’s downfall.
According to documents that Sunday World has seen, Bartholomew Matlala, almost exclusively known as Thapelo, signed off on a R3.9-million tender for the refurbishment of the Florianville community hall in May.
This immediately raised the ire of the local business community and residents because the representative of the appointed company, Mabalane A Seven Construction and Projects 102, shared his surname – Makoma Julia Matlala.
A Sunday World investigation has revealed that just a month after the company accepted the tender offer to renovate a local community hall, it was paid a combined amount of R2.6-million.
Though there’s no proof of any wrongdoing, the numerous business addresses associated with the company lend credence to the allegation that the Northern Cape location is a front to score local business.
According to company registration documents, it is based in Ellisras ext 18, in Lephalale, Limpopo. But the address the company used in the transaction with Sol Plaatje places it in Bestwood, Kathu, in Northern Cape.
The location in Bestwood appears to be someone’s home, a picture of the property taken on Wednesday suggests as much.
Only two addresses appear on the company website; one leads to nowhere – an empty space on the side of the road behind the Morgenhof Golf Estate.
Incidentally, the second and only other address, according to the website, is inside the residential estate.
According to the night watchman at the gate, there are no businesses inside, “just residences”. He didn’t know who lived in the unit listed as the business on the website.
The website lists a team of two for Mabalane – managing director Makoma Julia Matlala and head of marketing Thandeka Simons.
Its two listed phone numbers are cell phone numbers associated with Makoma Julia Matlala, while the picture of the two women greets you on the landing page.
Makoma Julia Matlala had not responded at the time of going to print.
