Centlec spokesperson, Lele Mamatu, tells OFM News the messages allege Sekoboto is extorting prospective contractors of R100 000 for tenders with the utility. Furthermore it’s alleged the CEO bullied and eventually ousted an employee referred to as ‘Ms Williams’ in the supply chain division in an effort to have direct access to that section for the explicit purpose of approaching prospective contractors.

Mamatu dismisses the messages as nothing more than “wild” allegations.

He says “it is clear that this is an act to undermine and disrespect the institution”. Mamatu advises people with similar complaints to rather approach law enforcement officials, instead of circulating “wild and irresponsible” messages online.

The source of the messages is unknown at this stage.

This isn’t the first time that corruption allegations have been raised at the utility. In late March, OFM News reported that the Centlec employees at the centre of a six-year long promotion scandal at the power utility were seeking closure on the matter following many years of litigation.

The OFM News team spoke to the only employee to attend the Bloemfontein High Court hearings in the saga at the time, on a promise of anonymity, in which he revealed that he and his fellow colleagues are ready for this whole ordeal to be finalised.

On Friday (26 March), Centlec represented by senior legal counsel, Stefan Grobler, sought leave to appeal the Bloemfontein High Court ruling which found in favour of the five employees declaring the revocation of their promotions as unlawful. Grobler wanted the complex matter to be elevated to the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA).

In 2015. Centlec launched an investigation into the group’s alleged use of a fraudulent version of the Mangaung Metropolitan Municipality’s rapid progression policy to motivate their promotions. The individual who launched the investigation was alleged to have been carrying out a vendetta against said employees.

The group had already argued successfully in the High Court, that the “fraudulent rapid progression policy” was likely an earlier version of the document at the Mangaung Metro and was not necessarily tampered with. However, Grobler maintained that even when you remove the “fraudulent policy” from the complex scenario, the reality is once it was established that the employer and employee “laboured under a mistake”. This then nullified the contractual agreement between the two parties. According to the report, Centlec revoked the contentious promotions after determining they were irregular and began docking the salaries of the employees in question, and are still making these deductions to date.

READ MORE: Centlec mum on costs of litigation in HR debacle

Among those embroiled in the scandal, is an HR Manager who was accused of being complicit in the irregular appointments, by not bringing the alleged tampered version of the progression policy to the attention of her seniors in Corporate Services. She is reported to have already challenged the process in the Labour Court and emerged victorious, ultimately receiving compensation from the utility. Another employee was accused of nepotism when his fiancé was hired as a cashier – while the vacancy was only advertised internally. The couple – according to the report – got married, mere days after the cashier began working at the power utility.

OFM News