GijimaAst lies low

By Paul Vecchiatto, ITWeb Cape Town correspondent

Cape Town, 13 Feb 2009

JSE-listed technology service provider GijimaAst has pre-empted the release of the auditor-general's report into the awarding of the Department of Home Affairs' (DHA's) “Who am I Online” contract.

The company, which heads the consortium awarded the deal, says it has not been interviewed or directly implicated.

“Who Am I Online” is a DHA project to help speed up the delivery of identity documents, passports and visas, enabling applicants to get almost real-time feedback on the progress of their applications. The implementation of the system is considered as essential by the DHA as part of its preparations for the 2010 Soccer World Cup.

The project was initially supposed to cost R1.9 billion when it was awarded to the consortium in October 2007, but has since escalated to around R2.4 billion.

The rising costs and controversy surrounding the actual awarding of the tender, which was based on recommendations made by the State IT Agency (SITA), prompted questions by Parliament's Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs. It also led to a clash between its chairman, Patrick Chauke, and DHA DG Mavuso Msimang.

Home affairs minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula then asked the AG's office to conduct its own investigation into the situation. Ministry spokesperson Cleo Mosama says that the minister received the AG's report yesterday (Thursday).

“The minister still has to review the report and study the recommendations before making it public,” Mosama says.

The report should have been completed in November and Mosama says the delay was largely caused by the AG's office struggling to get some of the required information, but that the minister had made several interventions to ensure that this was done.

Mosama also points out that GijimaAST was never the target of the AG's investigation.

Call for transparency

A GijimaAst statement says that, as a service provider, it is not directly implicated in two key issues that were supposed to have been examined by the auditor-general, namely the adjudication process and the reported escalation of costs.

“This may explain why GijimaAst has, to date, not been interviewed by the AG or SITA, or any other government institution, on this tender contract,” says Thoko Mnyango, GijimaAst managing executive for marketing and communications.

Mnyango believes full transparency is necessary, and that all allegations and innuendos are addressed.

“The allegations levelled by the DHA portfolio committee are serious and have a direct impact on the reputations of all involved, in particular GijimaAst. Anything less than a complete investigation could prejudice all involved, and innocent parties may be perceived to be guilty by association,” he says.

GijimaAst believes there are three key issues that need to be fully investigated by the AG, namely:

1 Was there any impropriety in the evaluation and the award of the tender by Mavuso Msimang (then SITA CEO and now DHA director-general) and Jonas Bogoshi (then SITA executive and now CEO of GijimaAst), or any other official of SITA or the DHA?
2 Is there any impropriety in the increase in the contract price and why has the price escalated?
3 What was the role of the senior management at home affairs and SITA during the tender process, and why did it take over a year for the director-general of home affairs to finally award the tender after SITA's recommendation for the award?

A DHA spokesperson says the department knows nothing about GijimaAst's statement and that it may be discussed at a ministerial executive committee meeting today.