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# South Africa: Western Cape High Court, Cape Town
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## Member of the Executive Council for Local Government , Environmental Affairs and Development Planning , Western Cape Province and Others v Central Karoo District Municipality and Others (4567/2024)
[2024] ZAWCHC 150 (3 June 2024)
Member of the Executive Council for Local Government , Environmental Affairs and Development Planning , Western Cape Province and Others v Central Karoo District Municipality and Others (4567/2024)
[2024] ZAWCHC 150 (3 June 2024)
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sino date 3 June 2024
Lastest amended
version 13 June 2024
REPORTABLE
SAFLII
Note:
Certain
personal/private details of parties or witnesses have been
redacted from this document in compliance with the law
and
SAFLII
Policy
FLYNOTES:
.
MUNICIPALITY
– Maladministration –
Investigation
–
Compelling
full co-operation – Failed or refused to hand over certain
information relating to investigation –
Defence of
confidentiality – Resolution provides for respondent to
account to structures within municipality –
Failure to do so
justified investigation – Duty bound to co-operate with
investigators – Conduct falls within
mandate of
investigators – No justifiable grounds to have resisted
relief sought –
Local
Government: Municipal Systems Act 32 of
2000
,
s
106.
THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH
AFRICA
IN
THE HIGH COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA
[WESTERN
CAPE DIVISION, CAPE TOWN]
CASE
NO
:
4567/2024
Before
ALLIE, J
Hearing:
20 May 2024
Judgment
Delivered electronically:
3 June 2024
In
the matter between:
MEMBER
OF THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL FOR LOCAL
1
st
Applicant
GOVERNMENT,
ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS AND DEVELOPMENT
PLANNING, WESTERN CAPE
PROVINCE
CORRIE
ENGELBRECHT
2
nd
Applicant
WERNER
STEYN
3
rd
Applicant
And
CENTRAL
KAROO DISTRICT MUNICIPALITY
1
st
Respondent
GAYTON
McKENZIE
2
nd
Respondent
BOTHA
E & ERASMUS Y INC
3
rd
Respondent
EUGENE
BOTHA
4
th
Respondent
FEZICUBE
EVENTS (PTY) LTD
5
th
Respondent
FEDILE
NORAH KHOLOANYANE
6
th
Respondent
JUDGMENT:
ALLIE,
J:
1.
This is an
application to compel the Respondents to give their full co-operation
to the investigators appointed by the Applicant
in terms of section
106 of the Municipal Systems Act 32 of 2000 Act (“the Systems
Act”).
2.
According to
Applicant, he and later, the investigators did not receive sufficient
co-operation from the First Respondent but subsequent
to the launch
of these proceedings, the First Respondent gave its full
co-operation, hence no relief is sought against First Respondent
at
the hearing.
3.
The relief set out in
the Notice of Motion is however still persisted with against Second
to Sixth Respondents.
4.
The relief set out in
the Notice of Motion is as follows:
4.1.
The first respondent
Municipality, and all those working under it, and under its direction
and control, are directed immediately
to comply with the
investigation initiated by the first applicant in terms of
s 106
of
the
Local Government: Municipal Systems Act No 32 of 2000
and the
Western Cape Monitoring and Support of Municipalities Act No 4 of
2014 (“the Western Cape Act”).
4.2.
To the extent that either the second, third,
fourth, fifth and/or the sixth respondents are in possession
of, or
have under their control, documents or any other related sources of
information (including in digital format) relating to
the
investigation initiated by the first applicant, they are directed
immediately to comply with the requests made by the second
and third
applicants who were duly appointed by the first applicant and
authorised in terms of s 106(1)(b) of the Systems Act.
4.3.
In particular, the third and/or fourth respondents
are ordered and directed to furnish the following information:
4.3.1.
copies of agreements,
and memoranda of understanding entered into between E Botha and Y
Erasmus Inc, and representatives of the
first respondent, including
the second respondent;
4.3.2.
opening
documents and bank statements of Account No: 105[…] held at
Mercantile Bank in the name of E Botha and Y Erasmus
Inc from 19 May
2022 to date;
4.3.3.
reports and
documents retained on file by E Botha and Y Erasmus Inc including but
not limited to the appointment of service providers,
agreements
signed and payments made to the service providers;
4.3.4.
documentation
confirming the utilisation of the funds, which should include,
amongst others, invoices, receipts, confirmation that
services were
provided, progress reports and proof of payments;
4.3.5.
documentation/e-mails,
supporting documentation in relation to payments made on specific
projects;
4.3.6.
documentations/e-mails,
supporting documentation in relation to instructions or any purported
authority received from representatives
of the first respondent
and/or second respondent, including instructions received from first
and/or second respondent to utilise
the trust account to receive
funds from the fundraising event held at Sandton Hotel on 21 May
2022, and to effect payment or transfer
funds received from the
fundraising event; and
4.3.7.
copies of
agendas and minutes of meetings held with the Mayoral Committee,
District Co-Ordinating Forum and/or other representatives
of the
Central Karoo District Municipality in accounting for thy funds.
4.4.
In particular, the
fifth and/or sixth respondents are ordered and directed to furnish
the following information:
4.4.1.
copies of agreements,
and any memorandum of understanding entered into between Fezicube
Events (Pty) Ltd and/or Fedile Norah Nhokloanyane
and E Botha and Y
Erasmus Inc, and representatives of the first respondent, including
the second respondent;
4.4.2.
reports and
documents relating to the appointment of and payments made to service
providers on behalf of first respondent, including
the second
respondent, in the possession of Fezicube (Pty) Ltd and/or the sixth
respondent; and
4.4.3.
documentation
and/or e-mails relating to the fundraising event held at Sandton
Hotel on 21 May 2022, including instructions received
from the first
and/or second respondent to organise the fundraising event and
utilise funds received from the fundraising event.
5.
The respondents are
directed (jointly and severally, the one paying the other to be
absolved), to pay the costs of this application,
including the costs
of two (2) counsel, on an attorney and client scale.
6.
Second Respondent
opposes the Application, essentially on the following grounds:
6.1.
The Second Respondent had made public utterances promising to
undertake certain service delivery
initiatives within the first 100
days of his term of office as Mayor;
6.2.
The Second Respondent discovered that the First Respondent did not
have the funds to give effect
to that promise;
6.3.
The Second Respondent, with the knowledge and consent of the First
Respondent proceeded with
fundraising initiatives to implement his
promise;
6.4.
Those initiatives were known to be his own personal projects;
6.5.
The projects fell outside of and
were different from the structure of the usual financial reporting of
Municipal Funds, as provided
for in the Local Government: Municipal
Finance Management Act, 56
(“MFMA”);
6.6.
The funds raised were paid into the
Trust account of the Third Respondent;
6.7.
Monies raised were used to buy items
such as, toilets, pipes, septic tanks and to hire diggers;
6.8.
Toilets were installed and swimming pools
repaired;
6.9.
When necessary, he used his own funds over and
above monies raised by the fundraiser;
6.10.
The monies raised were not those of the
Municipality, and the Municipality itself contributed no money
to the expenditure;
6.11.
The Municipality did not contract for the services
performed;
6.12.
The raising of the funds, and paying for the
projects, could therefore not legitimately be considered to be
maladministration of
the affairs of the Municipality, for the
purposes of an inquiry in terms of Section 106 of the Systems Act;
6.13.
The personal information of the persons who
contributed to the fundraiser are protected by the
Protection
of Personal Information Act, Act 4 of 2013
[“POPI”
Act];
6.14.
The funds were not municipal revenue and not
monies received by the Municipality for the purpose of relief,
therefore, the
provisions of Section 12 of the local government
MFMA do not apply and there is no lawful basis upon which to have
instituted an
investigation;
6.15.
The relief pertaining to Third Respondent’s
bank account is overbroad and extends to a period beyond the relevant
period when
fundraiser money was paid to it and disbursed by it; and
6.16.
Third Respondent is obliged to protect the
information of its unrelated trust creditors and would only provide
the requested information
up to the period that the funds were all
withdrawn and would redact the information of unrelated persons;
7.
Applicant’s contentions are as follows:
8.
On 23 August 2023, acting in terms of s 106(1)(b)
of the Systems Act read with s 7 of the Monitoring Act, the MEC
designated
the second and third applicants to investigate allegations
of maladministration, fraud, corruption and other serious
malpractices
at the first respondent.
9.
The MEC’s designation of the second and
third applicants has not been challenged in a separate application
nor in a counter-application,
and accordingly must be considered to
be valid and lawful.
10.
During the course of the investigation, the second
and third applicants reported that the third respondent firm of
attorneys has
failed and/or refused to hand over certain information
relating to the investigation on the grounds of,
inter
alia
, potential breach of POPIA, and
attorney/client privilege.
11.
The third respondent indicated that it would only
hand over the requested information if a Court Order compels it to do
so.
12.
Third Respondent’s primary concern appears
to be protecting the confidentiality of its trust creditors,
protecting the identity
of depositors for the fundraiser that
obtained no undue preference or advantage as a consequence of
participating in the fundraiser
and ensuring that the disclosure of
its Trust bank account did not exceed the period in which funds were
collected and expended
for the fundraiser.
13.
On Third Respondent’s behalf, it was
submitted that Fourth Respondent’s
ipse
dixit
concerning the amount collected
and the amount expended should be accepted.
14.
The amounts allegedly collected and spent as
per
Fourth Respondent, do not accord with the amounts
alleged by Second Respondent in the papers and in social media posts
made by Second
Respondent, that were referred to in the papers.
15.
Third and Fourth Respondent’s impropriety in
allowing the funds to be paid into the Fourth Respondent’s
Trust account
and to be expended for what is clearly a Municipal
purpose, means that the Applicants are justified in not merely
accepting
those allegations concerning the amounts
without second and third Applicant’s verification thereof. In
short, Second
and Third Applicants ought to be granted the
opportunity to conduct their investigation unhindered.
16.
The first respondent has co-operated by filing
further documentation on 5 March 2024 on the day this application was
launched. First
respondent has contended that it did not organise the
fundraising gala and it did not receive any of the proceeds of the
gala organised
by the second respondent.
17.
Fifth and sixth respondents have not co-operated
at all and they have filed a Notice to Oppose without filing
answering affidavits.
18.
Relying
on the case of
MEC
for Local Government, Western Cape and Matzikama Local Municipality
and Two Others,
[1]
Applicants’ counsel contends that s 106 is a mechanism by
which an MEC may investigate allegations that serious problems
have
arisen relating to the administration and governance of a
municipality.
19.
Applicants’ counsel submits that the MEC has
reason to believe, objectively, that maladministration, fraud,
corruption or
any other serious malpractices had occurred or were
occurring in the Municipality.
Evaluation
20.
Section 173
of the Municipal Finances Management Act 56 of 2003 [“MFMA”]
provides for a vast array of offences as constituting
financial
maladministration within a municipality.
21.
The Systems Act read together with the MFMA expand
the range of criminal offences that may be investigated under section
106.
22.
A prerequisite for the appointment of
investigators, is objectively ascertainable facts that would lead the
Minister to harbour
a reasonable belief that fraud or corruption or
maladministration had occurred or was occurring in a Municipality.
23.
On the facts of this case, what appears to be the
operative words are: “
in the
Municipality.”
24.
Applicants have elected not to proceed against the
First Respondent, the Municipality any longer, because it ostensibly
gave it’s
co-operation to the investigators, albeit ,
belatedly.
25.
Second Respondent’s case is based on
assertions that all fundraising revenue collected, were not the funds
of the Municipality
and hence they were deposited into the trust bank
account of Third Respondent and Second Respondent was free to use the
funds in
the manner that he did because it was not maladministration
in the Municipality.
26.
In a meeting held on 13 April 2022 by the District
Co-ordinating Forum, the second respondent in his capacity as
Executive Mayor,
set out his plan for the 100-day projects.
Those projects were referred to as public projects. The Executive
Mayor pledged
then to clean up the municipality, being the First
Respondent as well as other municipalities. Second Respondent did not
state
that those projects were being undertaken in his personal
capacity. Quite the contrary, he made it clear, that he was doing it
in his capacity as Executive Mayor and he was doing it in order to
“
clean up
”
the
Municipality. He certainly did not state that he was operating an
initiative outside of the Municipal structure nor parallel
to it.
27.
In the Minutes of the Special Council Meeting held
on 19 May 2022, which is headed “
DISTRICT
EXECUTIVE MAYOR’S FUND-RAISING DRIVE FOR EFFECTIVE
IMPLEMENTATION OF 100 DAYS’ ACTION PLAN
”
it is recorded that:
“
It
is therefore imperative that the Executive Mayor involved with the
assistance of Council should go out and mobilise funding through
approaching financial institutional, public sector and private donors
as the strategy of his fund-raising
initiative.
The first fund-raising event is scheduled to take place at Sandton
Hotel in Johannesburg on Saturday, 21 May
2022”
.
The Minutes of the same
meeting go on to record the following:
“
It
is hereby submitted that the Executive Mayor intends to facilitate a
fund-raising event called “Bring New Life to the Desert”
which is to be held on 21 May 2022, in the Sandton Hotel, Benmore
Room, starting at 18h30. The cost per table is prices at
R20
000.00, cost per person at R2 000.00 and the District Mayoral table
at R100 000.00”
.
28.
The resolution of 19 May 2022 ends with the
following words:
“
that
all funds be accounted and reported by the Executive Mayor to the
Mayoral Committee and also to the District Coordinating Forum
”
.
29.
Effect was then given to the promises made by the
second respondent, in his capacity as Mayor, at a Special Council
Meeting held
on 19 May 2022 where it is recorded that it was
“
imperative”
that
the Executive Mayor “
with the
assistance of Council”
should go
out and mobilise funding through approaching financial institutions,
“
public sector”
,
and private donors as a strategy of his fundraising initiative.
30.
It is not necessary for this Court to determine
precisely which legislation, if any, the Municipality intended to
comply with, when
it resolved that the Executive Mayor would account
for all funds to the Mayoral Committee and the District Co-ordinating
Forum.
All that needs to be shown, is that a form of
accountability for funds to Municipal Structures or sub-structures
was contemplated
in the Resolution.
31.
This Court is satisfied that the Resolution indeed
provides for the second respondent to account to structures within
the Municipality.
His failure to do so, therefore justified the
investigation and he is duty bound to co-operate with the
investigators.
32.
It is not open to the second respondent to contend
that he created a parallel process to first respondent’s
municipality in
order to render services to the public that first
respondent is constitutionally and legislatively bound to provide.
33.
Chapter 7 of the Constitution of the Republic of
South Africa, 1996, provides explicitly for the creation of local
government
inter alia
,
as stated in section 152(1) (b) of the Constitution: “
to
ensure the provision of services to communities in a sustainable
manner
.”
34.
It was thus clear that the fundraising initiative
would be in fulfilment of obligations of the Municipality, and that
it would be
held in the name of the Executive Mayor, and not in the
second respondent’s private capacity. The flyer advertising the
fundraising
event in fact says as much, because people were invited
to the event: “
to join the new
district mayor of the central Karoo
.”
35.
If
second respondent’s allegations stated above are accepted, then
it must follow, that there was no bases upon which he obtained
a
resolution from the Council of the Municipality to proceed with
fundraising. That interpretation will lead to the kind of absurdity
that the Court in
Endumeni
[2]
specifically
cautioned against. More specifically, in Endumeni it was held as
follows:
“
[25]
Which of the interpretational factors I have mentioned will
predominate in any given situation varies. Sometimes the language
of
the provision, when read in its particular context, seems clear and
admits of little if any ambiguity. Courts say in such cases
that they
adhere to the ordinary grammatical meaning of the words used. However
that too is a misnomer. It is a product of a time
when language was
viewed differently and regarded as likely to have a fixed and
definite meaning, a view that the experience of
lawyers down the
years, as well as the study of linguistics, has shown to be mistaken.
Most words can bear several different meanings
or shades of meaning
and to try to ascertain their meaning in the abstract, divorced from
the broad
context
of their use, is an unhelpful exercise. The expression can
mean
no more than
that,
when
the provision is read in context, that is the appropriate meaning to
give to the language used. At the other extreme, where
the context
makes it plain that adhering to the meaning suggested by apparently
plain language would lead to glaring absurdity,
the court will
ascribe a meaning to the language that avoids the absurdity. This is
said to involve a departure from the plain
meaning of the words used.
More accurately it is either a restriction or extension of
the language used by the adoption
of a narrow or broad meaning of the
words, the selection of a less immediately apparent meaning or
sometimes the correction
of an apparent error in the language in
order to avoid the identified absurdity
”
36.
A further difficulty for Second Respondent is the
allegation that he makes repeatedly, namely, that his motivation for
fundraising
and utilising of those funds was purely to honour and
fulfil his promises to the public that he would deliver certain
services
to the public within the first 100 days of his term as Mayor
of the First Respondent Municipality.
37.
Clearly property rights of owners extend to the
owners retaining the power to consent or refuse to consent, to
improvements being
made on its /their property.
38.
Second Respondent failed to prove that he obtained
the consent of Transnet to use or improve their facilities.
39.
Second Respondent alleges that he had meetings
with Transnet and they had agreed that he could invite any person
interested in using
the space for private business. However the
lease for the relevant building is held by the Beaufort-West
B-Municipality and
it falls under the Council of the Beaufort-West
B-Municipality. The lease agreement provides that the
Municipality may not
sub-let the property.
40.
Second respondent, on his own version, therefore
caused, one Gerard Hutton, and a local mechanic to be placed in the
buildings without
a proper sub-lease agreement and without any
agreement in relation to payment of, for example, utilities such as
water and/or electricity.
In terms of the lease agreement
between Transnet and the B-Municipality, they have to pay the lease
as well as the water and electricity
on these buildings, and these
payments would have come from their budget.
41.
On the face of it, therefore, there is a need to
establish, in due course, what undue advantage, if any, were granted
by Second
Respondent to Hutton and a local mechanic.
42.
The SCM
policy was adopted by the First Respondent’s council in terms
of section 217(1) of the Constitution and section 111
of the MFMA.
The policy must comply with the regulatory framework contained in the
Supply Chain Management Regulations.
43.
The purpose of the SCM (Supply chain management)
policy framework is contained in the
Public Finance Management
Act, 1999
[“PFMA”] and regulated by regulations to ensure
that a transparent, fair and equitable process is
followed in employing persons or businesses to render services or
supply goods
to a Municipality because the latter remains an organ of
state subject to the provisions of
sections 195
to
197
of Chapter 10
of the Constitution of South Africa, 1996.
44.
Maladministration could include the flouting of
the Municipal SCM policy with regard to procurement of service
providers for services
and goods supplied to Municipal land and
infrastructure.
45.
Second Respondents allegations that he obtained
the assistance of friends and family to undertake some of the work on
Municipal
property in furtherance of Municipal objectives, serves not
to shield him from possible violation of the SCM policy but instead
it demonstrates a likelihood of constructive violation of the policy.
46.
Therefore, the second respondent’s
contentions that he collected funds outside of the Municipality’s
structures and
used them without channelling them to the
Municipality’s coffers, do not assist him since on his own
admission, he used those
founds to discharge the Municipality’s
obligations, on Municipal land and in furtherance of the discharge of
his duties as
Municipal mayor.
47.
In my view, that conduct, therefore falls within
the mandate of the investigators to investigate Municipal fraud
corruption and
maladministration in the Municipality.
48.
That investigation, however, while necessary for
the implementation of the Minister’s obligations under the
Systems Act, does
not preclude an investigation by the Public
Protector nor by the SAPS.
49.
The Councillor Code of Conduct as legislated in the Municipal Systems
Act, Schedule
1, is instructive with regard to the role and function
of Mayor, whether it be in an A, B or C Municipality. The Code
provides,
inter alia,
that the Mayor shall not:
49.1.
undertake any other paid work if she/he is a full-time councillor,
unless the Council has expressly consented
thereto;
49.2.
act in any way that is inconsistent with their office, or expose
themselves to any situation involving the
risk of a conflict between
their official responsibilities and private interests; or,
49.3.
use their position or any information entrusted to them, to enrich
themselves or improperly benefit any
other person.
50.
The Code provides further that Mayors shall:
50.1.
Be accountable to the EXCO or the council, as the case may be, and
the electorate for their actions;
50.2.
Administer the council in accordance with National and Provincial
legislation and policy, and the bylaws,
decisions, resolutions,
policies and procedures of council, where applicable;
50.3.
Act at all times in accordance with the national Constitution in its
entirety and in particular with the
provisions on co-operative
governance;
50.4.
Provide EXCO or council, as the case may be, with full and regular
reports concerning matters under their
control.
50.5.
All mayors shall, in the performance of their functions, be committed
to the prevention and the eradication
of all forms of unfair
discrimination.
50.6.
All Mayors shall implement in the sphere of their work, the measures
and programmes considered to be necessary
and which are aimed at
redressing historical and all other forms of imbalances and
injustice.
50.7.
Mayors shall, as members of the council perform their duties in the
interest of the municipality as a whole
and in defence and promotion
of the integrity of the nation, avoiding measures that would
prejudice the National welfare.
50.8.
Mayors shall explicitly take the responsibility for the effective and
efficient administration of their
municipality so as to achieve the
aims of government policy and implement the laws of the country.
50.9.
All Mayors shall, at all times, observe practices that are free from
all forms of corruption. Government
office, position or privileged
information shall not be used to distribute favours or patronage nor
to seek or obtain any personal
fortune or favour.
50.10.
Mayors shall not be active in professional associations or societies,
unless Council has expressly consented thereto.
50.11.
In order to facilitate clean government and exemplary behaviour, all
Mayors shall declare their assets and financial interests
to Council
as contemplated in the Councillor Code of Conduct. They shall
disclose all consultancies, shareholdings and directorships
or any
other form of pecuniary benefit received by dependent family members
(including those received by their immediate spouses)
from an
external source.
50.12.
Mayors shall not play any active role in profit-making Institutions.
They shall surrender directorships and their shares
shall be held in
"blind trusts" which shall be managed by independent
trustees. The trustees shall conclude all share
transactions and
Mayors shall have no influence over these transactions or trustees.
50.13.
Mayors or immediate dependent members of the families of Mayors, may
not serve on the boards of public companies or own shares
in
companies directly connected with the Mayor's official duties. The
test in these cases shall be whether the Mayor could advantage
such
companies over their competitors, or whether the families could
derive improper benefit from such associations with such companies.
50.14.
Only small gifts and gifts offered on official occasions may be
accepted, provided that Mayors have satisfied themselves
that the
gifts are not being presented to influence them in an improper
manner. Mayors shall register any gift received, which
in their
estimate exceeds the value of R1000,00 or such amount as may be
determined by the Minister from time to time. Gifts that
are seen to
be of a traditional/customary nature, need not be registered.
51.
The Code provides as follows concerning its application to Mayors:
“
The
provisions of this Code of Conduct, shall apply to all Mayors and
Executive Mayors, including such councillors that from time
to time
may perform the duties of the Mayor during his or her absence
”
.
52.
When a public office bearer dishes out largesse, it has the potential
to lead
to the creation of client / patron relationships.
Clientelism in the public sector has the potential to foster
corruption
and ought to be discouraged. It is therefore
imperative that Respondents account for the use of funds in
furtherance of the
Municipality’s objectives, even if a portion
of those funds were the personal funds of any of them.
53.
There can be no doubt that an investigation into the conduct of the
Mayor, acting
in his capacity as Mayor and as an executive officer of
a Municipality, is indeed an investigation into conduct occurring in
the
Municipality.
54.
Second Respondent’s allegations that he acted in his personal
capacity
when attempting to fulfil promises that he made in his
capacity as Mayor, is therefore irreconcilable with the duties and
functions
of a Mayor.
55.
There can be no justifiable grounds on which to have resisted the
relief sought,
save in respect of the disclosure of unrelated trust
creditor information in relation to third and fourth respondents.
Costs
56.
Counsel for Third and Fourth Respondent submitted
that if they were successful in having the terms of the relief sought
with regard
to disclosure of the trust bank account limited, they
ought to be awarded costs.
57.
I am of the view that, save for the limitation
that needs to be placed on the investigators viewing the information
of the unrelated
trust creditors, a limitation, that Applicants
conceded by filing an Amended Notice of Motion, the limitation sought
to be placed
on the period for which the investigators may have
regard to the relevant bank account is not justified when regard is
had to the
contradictory statements made by second respondent and
fourth respondent concerning the amounts collected and spent.
58.
Nor am I persuaded that Third and Fourth
Respondent ought to redact information concerning the identity of the
fundraiser depositors
that are found to have derived no undue benefit
for it is only after the investigators know the identity of all
depositors and
persons to who funds were paid, that they will be able
to ascertain whether any undue benefit accrued to them.
59.
In my view, a provision in the order to the effect
that depositors with no undue benefit must simply not have their
identities disclosed
in the investigators’ report ought to
provide sufficient protection to untainted people.
60.
In the result, I hold that the fundraiser was
intended by all parties involved to be conducted on behalf of first
respondent and
the funds collected and disbursed, as well as the
conduct of the respondents in the fundraiser and its consequential
projects are
subject to investigation by second and third applicants.
61.
The qualification to the relief sought as set out
in the draft order attached hereto, adequately protects unrelated
trust creditors
of third and fourth respondent.
62.
I find that the applicants have been substantially
successful and therefore costs should follow the result.
63.
Scale B is appropriate taking account the
complexity of the issues in dispute.
IT IS ORDERED THAT:
An order is made in terms
of the attached draft.
______________
JUDGE
R. ALLIE
For
Applicants: Adv Norman Arendse
SC
Yasmin
Mohamed
Attorneys: State
Attorney, Ms Colleen Bailey
For
1st Respondent: Mr L
Tshangana
Attorneys: Tshangana
& Associates Inc, Cape Town
For
2nd & 6th Respondent: Adv David Gess
(SC)
Adv
Naseerah Essa
Attorneys:
Mayet Incorporated
[1]
2023
(3) SA 521 (SCA)
## [2]Natal
Joint Municipal Pension Fund v Endumeni Municipality
2012 (4) SA 593
(SCA)at
[25]
[2]
Natal
Joint Municipal Pension Fund v Endumeni Municipality
2012 (4) SA 593
(SCA)
at
[25]
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