Following these testimonies, questions arose as to how the Free State project should have benefited the intended beneficiaries, and why the Free State government paid R106 million to the Gupta-linked company, Estina, when Estina did not deliver on its end of the agreement.

Some of these intended beneficiaries including Ephraim Dhlamini and Meshack Ncongwane who have been calling for investigations into this multi-million rand project will also be testifying today.

The Deputy Director-General for Corporate Administration and Coordination in the Free State Premier’s office, Albertus Venter, nonetheless told Zondo this could be due to the fact that ‘the project was terminated before its logical conclusion’.

“The contribution of Estina, as I understood, was towards the completion of the project in its entirety. The R106 million was for what was actually contracted on the ground, which the department would now receive the benefit on consolation. Estina was not supposed to receive any benefit subsequent to the cancellation in respect of project assets,” added Venter.

He confirmed that he prepared the cancellation letter between the Free State Department of Agriculture and Estina and that Estina sent invoices wanting payment for the work done up until the cancellation.

He said the outstanding invoice submitted by Estina to the department was R106 million.

The contract between Estina and the department was terminated in 2014, with no further claims put forward by the company since the cancellation.

Venter says the controversial project would have been great for beneficiaries should it have been executed properly. This, after he told Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo during his testimony that he was initially excited about the project and thought it was a good idea when he first heard about it.

Venter’s 2nd day of testimony at the Zondo Commission comes after DA leader in the Free State Legislature, Roy Jankielsohn, took the stand yesterday and told the commission that more than 80 intended beneficiaries of the project are still sidelined.

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