The fraud and money laundering case against former ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe and his six co-accused has been rescheduled to June 17, due to changes in some of the defendants' legal counsel.
On Tuesday morning, Mabe and his co-accused made their second appearance before the Palm Ridge Magistrate's Court. Among the many accusations against them are those of corruption and fraud relating to government tenders.
The postponement came after the defence teams asked the prosecution for further information about the charge sheet.
“We would have finalised all those processes so that we can move forward,” the defence said.
The allegations are based on a claim that the contract agreement prohibited upfront payments and only allowed payments to be made to the service provider after 50% of the job was completed.
It is also reported that advocate Zola Majavu will be representing Mabe, his wife and two companies.
The matter is around a waste management tender worth R27 million that was purportedly improperly given to Mabe's business, Enviro Mobi, in 2017.
After being taken into custody in October 2024, the defendants were freed on R30,000 bail each.
The code of conduct for Members of Parliament (MPs) states that MPs are not allowed to do business with the government, including preventing government contracts from being awarded to private enterprises.
Mabe disputed the National Prosecuting Authority's (NPA) assertion that he was still an MP at the time his company won the contract.
Furthermore, according to the State's affidavit, Enviro Mobi failed to reveal its affiliation with Mabe throughout the bidding process.
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