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NASH, SIPHO SHONGWE’S BUSINESS DEAL REVEALED

25/03/2018 09:33:00 BY INVESTIGATIONS TEAM

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MBABANE - Bishop Nash Shongwe is a business partner with incarcerated murder suspect Sipho Shongwe, it can be revealed.

The two are co-directors in a company styled V-Trac Investments which traded with, among others, the Royal Swaziland Police and the Swaziland Posts and Telecommunications Corporation (SPTC).
The founder of Divine Healing Ministries, who is also a member of the King’s Advisory Council (Liqoqo), allegedly owns 10 per cent shares together with the businessman.
Sipho owns 65 per cent while one Abel Hlatjwako is also a shareholder with a 25 per cent stake.

For registration purposes of the company, Sipho used a passport numbered 10012832, which expires on September 16, 2018.
This is according to company records kept at the Registrar of Companies - a department under the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade.
The objects for which the company was established were listed as; to “engage in the business of rendering electronic security services such as installing video cameras and alarm systems.

“To engage in the business of supplying and installing public address systems, video conferencing and environmental management systems,” among thousands of other objectives which were mentioned in the document, including but not limited to buying, selling and refining bullion and spice, coin and precious metal and conducting prospecting and mining operations of all kinds.

Explaining how the name V- Trac Investments (Proprietary) Limited was chosen as the company name, it is explained that V- Trac is derived from video tracking, which is a unique way of doing business in that the company does live video monitoring for security and management reasons.

“Our cameras installed in vehicles and buildings can be moved electronically by a remote person to follow events live on video,” the short description compiled by shareholder Abel Hlatjwako read.
At the time of compiling this investigation, the bishop’s shareholding and directorship of V- Trac Investments (Proprietary) Limited had not changed, at least as far as the records contained within the company file on Friday. The Times SUNDAY, through its investigations can reveal that V- Trac Investments (Proprietary) Limited was registered on September 29, 2009 and initially had two directors; Abel Hlatjwako, who owned 50 per cent shares and Sipho Shongwe who also held the remaining 50 per cent.

This, however, changed after a meeting held at Gree Swaziland offices in October, the same year, where the issue of the share redistribution was discussed and finalised.
It is unclear from the documents the Times SUNDAY has in its possession how Bishop Shongwe became a shareholder in the company as this was not mentioned in the details of the meeting which was held by shareholders and directors of the company.

He (bishop) attended the said meeting. Sipho, Hlatjwako as well as Company Secretary Nicholas Mabuza were also in attendance.
The four men had gathered to discuss the need to inject supplementary cash to supply new orders, which the company had secured as well as the issue of share distribution.
According to the minutes, Hlatjwako is the one who came up with the business idea which needed a seed capital of E200 000. He informed the meeting that the new company had just procured four tenders that needed to be financed.

capacity to finance

In his presentation, he mentioned that the company did not have the capacity to finance the orders valued at E393 000. These were from the Royal Swaziland Police valued at E119 000, Universal Milling valued at E40 000, another from Valley Farm valued at E20 000 and one from the Swaziland Post and Telecommunications Company valued at E214 000.
The total value of the tenders was E746 000. “ He (referring to Hlatjwako) said the company did not have the money to fund these orders and the likelihood of banks considering any request in view of the newness of the business account was unlikely,’ read the minutes in part.

As a shareholder, Bishop Shongwe is recorded to have also suggested that he be given the orders so that he could approach SwaziBank.
However, Mabuza, the Secretary, asked Shongwe (Sipho) to bail out the company and that was when he demanded that he be given more shares than the 50 per cent he was already holding.
It is stated in the minutes of the meeting that his argument was that when he was invited to join the company as a shareholder, he only had to assist the company with a loan deposit which was repayable immediately after the loan was credited into the business account by the lending bank.

He is recorded to have observed that terms of his engagement had changed and as such he was now being requested to contribute working capital. “He desired that this transaction be translated into higher shareholding,” read the minutes of the meeting. Sipho further expressed displeasure over the fact that Hlatjwako was also demanding a salary of about E9 000.

He said he felt the move was grossly inappropriate in that Hlatjwako was a director for the company and as such he felt he needed to sacrifice for the development of the company like all other directors w
ho weren’t drawing salaries.“Bishop Nash Shongwe conceded with Sipho Shongwe’s observation and felt that the move for a pay was premature in view of the company’s financial position,” read the minutes.

The secretary, who appeared to be the mediator during the meeting, then asked Sipho how he could feel if Hlatjwako’s shares could be diminished and his increased in return for the needed further cash contribution to the business. He also said this could enable Hlatjwako to draw the desired salary of E9 000 from the business. The minutes revealed that Shongwe agreed to the suggestion as long as the company agreed to pay back all his money as soon as it received payment. However, Hlatjwako contested this proposal and advised that he had contributed as far as founding the company was concerned as well as bringing the business idea to a viable business state. He argued that he wanted this to be considered before the decision to review shareholding was taken up.

No mention of Bishop Nash’s shareholding status is made.
It was revealed in the minutes that Hlatjwako and Sipho each held 45 per cent of the company’s equity and were considered major shareholders.
A contribution basis method was proposed and accepted by the two shareholders as the basis for determining the major shareholder between them. It was again not stated what Bishop Shongwe, who held 10 per cent of the company, was expected to contribute.

Total contributions by Hlatjwako amounted to almost half a million Emalangeni at E460 000 while incarcerated businessman Shongwe contributed over a million Emalangeni to the business as his contributions amounted to E1.2 million. The minutes stated that the secretary revealed the share distribution to necessitate voting by all members who were present. The outcome was; A.B Hlatjwako had 25 per cent, Sipho Shongwe with 65 per cent and Bishop Nash remained with his initial 10 per cent shareholding.