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| Dr Blade Nzimande. ©Gallo Images |
Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande has accused the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) of spreading "nefarious" lies that have damaged his reputation, threatened trust in the students' payment system and resulted in death threats against the chairperson of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS). The report, released on Thursday, alleged kickbacks, mismanagement, and political meddling in the scheme. Outa identified four suppliers — Coinvest Africa (Pty) Ltd, Tenet Technology (Pty) Ltd, Ezaga Holdings (Pty) Ltd, and Norraco Corporation (Pty) Ltd — appointed in June 2022 to handle direct payments to students, which Outa says they were ill-equipped to do, causing NSFAS’ payment system to collapse.
Outa has also published several reports exposing how funds were being mismanaged and the role of former NSFAS CEO Andile Nongogo in the alleged corruption. Among the issues cited by Outa are authorised payments of R93,579 for 20 branded T-shirts (costing R4,679 each), R264,340 for six branded umbrellas (R44,057 per umbrella), R36,300 to design a letterhead, and R668,200 to print 100 copies of the Services Seta Annual Performance Plan.
Nzimande appointed both Nongogo as CEO of NSFAS and Khosa as the chairperson of the NSFAS board. Nzimande remains associated with the SA Communist Party (SACP) after serving as its general secretary for 24 years. In the recording, Ntumba mentions a gift of T-shirts and bags for the SACP’s 2022 conference, provided through his wife’s company, Star Sign and Print.
The SACP has denied receiving favors and stands firm against corruption. Nzimande's department tweeted a clumsy response on Friday, saying he rejected the malicious allegations and reserved the right to take necessary legal action. Ntumba couldn't be reached, and requests for comment from Coinvest and Tshegofatso Ntumba went unanswered.
On Monday, Nzimande called Outa's report an attempt to tarnish his image as well as that of the department and the government. He said he had never used any money from any of his department's entities to fund the South African Communist Party, nor had he received any personnel kickbacks from any of the service providers or other entities falling under his department. He said his conscience was clear and had nothing to hide, so he reserved his right to take legal action.
Outa tweeted that Nzimande was welcome to sue them, stating that Outa would defend any legal action against them. The Democratic Alliance (DA) has questioned what it calls "systemic corruption" in the department and said it would lay criminal charges against Nzimande and wants the NSFAS board to be declared delinquent.
