Nkandla architect ordered to repay state R147m over upgrades

The Special Tribunal has ordered Minenhle Makhanya, the architect and principal agent responsible for the security upgrades at former president Jacob Zuma’s Nkandla residence, to repay the state R147.3m after finding that his appointment and conduct during the project were unlawful.

The SIU said on Thursday that the tribunal had ordered Makhanya to pay the national treasury R147.27m, representing the financial loss suffered by the then department of public works as a result of unlawful conduct in the project.

The ruling is the latest development in the long-running Nkandla saga, which became one of the defining scandals of Zuma’s presidency and led to a landmark Constitutional Court judgment on the powers of the public protector and the accountability of the president and parliament.

The SIU’s investigation into the project was authorised under proclamation R59 of 2013. The unit was directed to investigate allegations that goods, works and services for the project had been procured in a manner that was not fair, equitable, transparent, competitive or cost-effective, and to recover financial losses suffered by the state as a result of unlawful conduct.

Following Zuma’s election as president, security assessments by the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) identified measures required to secure him, his family and his private residence in Nkandla, KwaZulu-Natal.

The department of public works initially estimated the cost of the project at R27.90m. Funding was approved by the department’s planned maintenance budget committee in August 2009. Makhanya was appointed as principal agent for the project later that month.

However, the tribunal found that his appointment had not been preceded by a competitive bidding or open tender process and that there was no emergency or other lawful justification for bypassing procurement requirements.