FUNDUZI: THOSE WHO BENEFITTED MILLIONS WALKING FREE

MBABANE - Funduzi Forensic Services (FDZ) says people who benefitted millions of Emalangeni to cripple the health sector are still free, yet the company is being attacked for its report.

FDZ Director Zakhele Dlamini said his company was under attack for merely doing its job. Funduzi Forensic Services (Pty) Ltd is a forensic company that was awarded a tender to investigate the root cause of the health crisis exacerbated by drugs and medicine theft in Eswatini.
However, the company compiled a report which has not been implemented, since it was tabled in Parliament this year. In an interview yesterday, Dlamini said behind the attack were certain people who wanted to make sure that the forensic report did not see the light of day.

Intelligence

He said so serious was the attack that through their intelligence, they gathered that a team from Eswatini had been sent to investigate the authenticity of the report with the African Certified Fraud Examiners.  He revealed that they learnt that the aim of the investigation was to ascertain if the report could be used as evidence against implicated individuals in a court of law.  “This is a big fight against Funduzi Forensic Services (Pty) Ltd, and there are people behind it. They want to make sure that the report does not see the light of day,” he said. Dlamini said the company did due diligence and worked without fear or favour when conducting investigations into the supply of drugs.

He wondered why the company was subjected to scrutiny, after having done what it was entrusted to do by the nation. Dlamini mentioned that the company handed over the forensic report to government on November 11, 2023. He said it was surprising that there was no action taken by the Ministry of Health, since the report, which pointed to the possible root cause of the health crisis in the country, was tabled.

“One wonders why people rush to investigate and fabricate stories against the company, particularly at a time when action needs to be taken to implement the report. In a country with a political will, any person implicated in the report would have been suspended from work, pending investigations. No one would have been at work while they were implicated in the report,” he said. He said His Majesty King Mswati III’s ‘Nkwe’ approach was used on investigations aimed at frustrating the forensic report, instead of acting on the report.

Dlamini said people seemed to have forgotten about the obtaining health crisis emanating from drugs and medicine shortage in the country. This, he said, was because certain individuals had decided to shift the focus from the findings of the company to make sure that the report died a natural death.
He said what was shocking was that a task team was put in place to work on the health crisis. He said Funduzi Forensic Services was not the first company to investigate the real cause of drugs and medicine shortage in the country.

“Our report is almost similar to other reports which were aimed at establishing the root cause of the drugs and medicine shortage in the country. Then, why is Funduzi Forensic Services investigated on its spending, after doing its job. Where on earth have you seen a company investigated for its spending, after being awarded a tender? Surely, it has never happened,” he said. He maintained that the company was awarded E2.8 million for the tender. He said it was never E2 million or E3 million as stated in other forums. He said the fabrications were a clear indication that there was a big fight against the company.

“Kuyabonakala kutsi kuyaliwa lapha, futsi kuliwa ngemandla lamakhulu. Kutsi ngubani, wentani kulowenteni, asati,” he added in vernacular, which can be loosely translated to mean: “It is clear that there is a big fight here and there is more pressure. Then, the question is, who is fighting who, for what? Nobody knows.”

Dlamini stated that the forensic report was costly to the company, so much that it had to pay E800 000 on legal fees. The company, was also accused of having paid a certain amount to a Standard Bank employee. To this, Dlamini said even though he did not want to discuss a matter that was still pending in court, it would be folly for a company dealing with fraud to deposit any amount to a bank.

Dlamini broke his silence after the Anti-Corruption Commission launched investigations on beneficiaries of a sum of about E3 million, that was received from an account held by Funduzi Forensic Services (Pty) Ltd. Developments in the matter have seen a Standard Bank employee approaching the Industrial Court, seeking to stop his disciplinary hearing, after he was charged with alleged bribery and corruption by the financial institution.

Investigators

It was reported that the bank charged Delisa Malinga after he allegedly admitted to the bank’s investigators that he was one of the beneficiaries of funds from Funduzi’s bank account. According to Malinga, part of the events that led to him being charged was a letter from the ACC. He alleged that the letter sought certain information about him and transactions in his UNAYO account.

Judge Manene Thwala has since reserved his judgment in the matter.  In conclusion, Dlamini said they banked their hope on God, ancestors and their intelligence.  When sought for comment, Minister of Health Mduduzi Matsebula said he trusted that all relevant stakeholders or structures would do what is needed to make sure that all those who contributed to the drugs shortage answer for their sins. He said he did not hear Dlamini on national radio.

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