Entries for the 7th edition of the Rust-en-Vrede Portrait Award will officially open on Thursday June 5 Established in 2013 and held every two years the award offers artists the chance to compete for a share of R200 000 in prize money and the opportunity for a solo exhibition The Top 40 finalists will also be featured in a group exhibition and included in a national touring show submissions will be accepted from 9am on Thursday June 5 until 5pm on Saturday June 14 Portraiture remains a vital form of storytelling and a mirror to both personal and collective experience “A portrait says so much more … you have to include the psychology and background of the person We encourage entries that push the boundaries of what a portrait can be – works that explore identity emotion and the complexity of human connection,” says Donavan Mynhardt The 2025 Portrait Award continues to champion inclusivity and artistic innovation offering a platform for emerging and established talent alike “This competition is about providing a playing field for all and celebrating meaningful artistic expression Portraiture remains one of the most accessible and relatable genres in art history – a genre that speaks directly to our shared humanity,” says Mynhardt.  The Rust-en-Vrede Portrait Award is committed to nurturing diverse and emerging artistic voices “We’ve seen artists without formal training make it into the Top 40,” says Mynhardt “This competition is about vision and execution We want to remove as many of those obstacles as we can particularly for underrepresented artists.”  On this year’s panel of judges are Thonton Kabeya (Democratic Republic of Congo/South Africa) celebrated contemporary artist; Dr Dineke Orton (South Africa) Art Historian and Curator at the University of Johannesburg and recent Kanna Award winner for Curation “We’ve intentionally selected a panel that represents the full creative ecosystem – a curator a writer and an artist – for a balanced and insightful judging process All entries are judged anonymously to ensure fairness and objectivity with no artist names or biographies provided,” says Mynhardt Artists aged 18 and over (as of 1 January 2025) created using any drawing or painting medium Each portrait must be based on a real person known to the artist who has granted permission for their likeness to be used and/ or depicted graphically the artist must have taken the photograph with the permission of the subject The first round of judging is based on digital submissions about 200 to 300 works are selected for a second round of in-person adjudication Artists whose work is selected for the second round will be required to send their physical artworks to Rust-en-Vrede Gallery Artists may make use of the free delivery service provided at designated Stuttaford Van Line depots in Johannesburg Details are available on the gallery website Additional hampers and non-cash prizes may also be awarded In response to growing interest from younger artists the Junior Portrait Award will launch in 2026 for participants aged 16 to 18 More details will be shared on the gallery’s website in due course Entries are only open for a limited period and most importantly – be bold and don’t wait till the last minute to enter The Rust-en-Vrede Portrait Award is your platform to be seen.” visit:https://rust-en-vrede.com/portrait-award Filed under: Farm, News The NSPCA has successfully countered legal manoeuvres by the defence in the ongoing animal cruelty case against the Vrede Integrated Farming Trust (formerly Estina Dairy Farm) facing charges under the Animals Protection Act (APA) 71 of 1962 attempted to evade criminal liability by arguing that they are only accountable to the Master of the High Court in terms of the Trust Property Control Act 57 of 1988 The defence has once again employed convoluted legal arguments to shield their clients from prosecution they assert that the matter should be adjudicated as a civil rather than a criminal case the NSPCA maintained that the accused are “owners” under the Animals Protection Act 71 of 1962 (APA) and are therefore subject to criminal prosecution for their actions which constitute animal cruelty under the APA The Magistrate’s Court has clear jurisdiction over the matter after the NSPCA submitted representations in favour of prosecution the Free State Director of Public Prosecutions decided that prosecution against the accused will proceed dealing a significant blow to the defence’s attempts to delay justice The accused appear more invested in delaying legal proceedings than in meeting the most basic needs of the animals under their care Liability cannot be evaded by unduly relying on “trustee status” The accused’s role in the mistreatment of animals is a criminal offence and the attempts to dismiss the charges lack legal merit The NSPCA will not allow delay tactics to derail justice Animals are not pawns – they are sentient beings that deserve respect If you are as passionate about animals and their well-being as we are consider supporting our causes by donating But will you be the one who stands up for animals Animal welfare isn’t always in the spotlight but it changes lives – for every neglected ensuring animals across South Africa are protected The equation is simple: the more supporters we have you can help ensure that no animal suffers in silence 6 Clark Road, Florentia, Alberton 011 907 3590 nspca@nspca.co.za About the NSPCAContact DetailsVacancies2023 Annual ReportNewsPodcasts Copyright © The NSPCA 2025• All Rights Reserved | Terms | Email Disclaimer | Use of Logo Be the first to receive information from Eat Out. 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Download the app to enjoy the power of South Africa’s biggest restaurant directory in your hand This decision marks a significant setback in the quest for justice for both the people of the Free State and the beneficiaries who are affected by corruption and state capture Incidents like this contribute to the public’s loss of confidence in the criminal justice system’s ability to fight the scourge of corruption and other crimes The Estina scandal had devastating consequences for the beneficiaries and community who were given hope but were ultimately left disappointed the DA remains unwavering in our commitment to hold those responsible accountable We will continue to pursue every available avenue to ensure that justice is served and that the affected communities receive the redress they rightfully deserve The fight for accountability and transparency is far from over and we remain resolute in our determination to see this matter through to its rightful conclusion We hope that the reinstatement of this case will have a better outcome the third time around The DA will keep the public informed on any new developments and will maintain our vigilance in advocating for a fair and just resolution to this matter registered non profit organisation in South AfricaReg No: 011-895 NPO Home | South Africa The failed Vrede dairy farm scandal is back in the spotlight this week. The trial into the R280-million money laundering, fraud and corruption case involving the Gupta family associates is set to start on Monday until 13 September 2024 in the Free State High Court The long-standing case emanates from alleged looting of the Free State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development between July 2012 and April 2014 The accused include former and current officials of the department former Free State Agriculture MEC Mosebenzi Zwane After the matter was revived in 2022 with new arrests including Mosebenzi Zwane The accused in the Estina scandal were first arrested in 2018 and the matter was later provisionally withdrawn Gupta associate Ugeshni Govender and Ronica Ragavan are among the accused was appointed as an implementing agent by the department of agriculture for the Vrede dairy farm according to the indictment the company was a front for the Guptas and their associates to extract funds from the department of their own benefit Investigations also revealed that no proper tender procedures were followed with regards to the decision to fund the proposed Vrede Dairy Project Estina did not honour its obligations in terms of the agreement as only the department paid its contribution into the bank accounts held by Estina Zwane previously said the decision to bring the matter to court was correct “I think this this is the correct decision that I should be given a chance to come and say what I know about this matter And I maintain its the correct decision for the matter to be brought to court without me being judged unfairly when people do not know facts.” The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Investigating Directorate’s former spokesperson “What we always say as the investigating directorate is that we are here to be prosecutors to prosecute without fear or prejudice and bring a case for the accused to respond to it It’s not within our ambit to say that it is a water tight case but its for the court as the adjudicator to basically say it is a case that we should win With that said as the NPA we have done all we possibly can in the 280 million matter for it to be re-invoked and we are pleased with what we have done thus far.” The corruption-tainted project began with high expectations in 2012 Emerging farmers were called to a meeting where their particulars were written down as beneficiaries of the project Later on they saw other people getting employed while they remained excluded The project also came under the spotlight at the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture The Public Protector found the provincial Agriculture Department guilty of gross misconduct and maladministration for its handling of the project State Capture report recommends critical role players in the Vrede dairy project be held accountable 24 June 2022: the NSPCA has been working tirelessly to bring the culprits of the Vrede Integrated Farming Trust to justice for the cruelty and neglect of the farm animals under their care the Gupta-linked facility in the Free State remains subject to prosecution since April 2023 two criminal dockets were compiled under Section 2(1) of the Animals Protection Act 71 of 1962 against the farm manager and six directors of the Trust as evidenced by the withholding of essential veterinary care as well as the ongoing issues with easily preventable yet highly contagious diseases The first delay arose when the prosecutor declined to prosecute the first docket (nolle prosequi) This occurred because the farm management had relocated to their countries of origin and were unavailable to face prosecution and NSPCA Inspectors were subpoenaed to testify and present evidence in court in August 2024 prior to the accused’s appearance on 22 November 2024 the NSPCA was interrupted by the defence attorney who requested a postponement until all beneficiaries were included in the charges which would involve over sixty individuals the defence changed its position regarding the involvement of the individuals charged arguing that six out of the seven defendants should be acquitted and claiming that the beneficiaries had no direct dealings with the animals involved only the farm manager should be held responsible for the actions in question as they were the ones directly managing the animals This shift in the defence’s strategy aims to absolve the other individuals of responsibility placing the blame solely on the farm manager argued that charges should be upheld against those directly responsible for the care the court granted a postponement on condition that the defence submit their reasons for the dismissal of charges against the directors by 02 December 2024 Feedback from the Prosecutor was later received with reasons to this effect The State will argue the merits of the reasons received and will ensure that all responsible persons are held accountable for the suffering endured by these animals Join the Muizenberg Historical Conservation Society for a walking tour exploring the area's architectural heritage on Sunday September 22 Mr McDougall is a director of the Muizenberg Historical Conservation Society He previously chaired the Johannesburg Heritage Foundation, where he led the restoration of Hilson Bridge and Orange Grove Waterfall. In 2021, he published RSA365 a survey of the built environment in South Africa In 2022, he was presented with the Johannesburg Heritage Lifetime Honorary Membership Award acknowledging his contribution to the foundation's work over the last decade The tour will start at the Rhodes Cottage Museum at 10am Mr McDougall said Muizenberg was no more than a remote outpost of farms and fishing huts before the arrival of the railway in late 1882 The ability to travel from Cape Town and further afield to Muizenberg’s beaches quickly and comfortably changed everything and by the second decade of the 20th century the stretch between Muizenberg and Kalk Bay was South Africa’s premier holiday destination would start with two seminal buildings – Rust en Vrede would come to influence the architecture of Muizenberg Although the tour’s focus will be on Cape Mediterranean architecture it will pause to admire observation posts and homes in the Cape vernacular and an example of the heroic age of modernism Please check your email and enter your one time pin below:   Open in Gmail Sorry there was an error loading the audio I’m on a trip to the original sin site of State Capture: the Estina Dairy Farm now called the Integrated Vrede Dairy Project black Free State farmers were bilked out of hundreds of millions of rands in the first incursion by the Gupta family into South Africa the town called ‘peace’ in Afrikaans is broken and nearly dead It symbolises how the country has struggled to recover from the lost decade of grand corruption Local businesses club together to tar roads as best they can Like so many other towns in the beautiful mielie gold province, it’s also testimony to former ANC strongman and provincial premier Ace Magashule’s reign of extraction. Magashule hired the Gupta money-man Ashok Narayan as an advisor in the Premier’s Office and a long line of bureaucrats facilitated the theft of at least R280-million from the province’s agriculture budget and its redirection to the wedding planners and as the initial deposits for the mega-state capture project (Photo: Gallo Images / Sowetan / Mduduzi Ndzingi) and Warden off good national roads into rutted provincial routes and finally onto broken municipal roads in what were once thriving farming towns Shelley wrote of corrupted legacies, and how a monument to a tyrant lay lost in the desert, its decaying inscription read: “Look on my works, ye Mighty and despair”.  Shelley ends: “No thing beside remains. Round the decay of that Colossal Wreck, boundless and bare, (t)he lone and level sands stretch far away”.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Roads in the Eastern Free State are in terrible condition golden fields as far as the eye can see and beautiful in the ways that the central parts of our country show up Magashule and the ANC had much to build on when apartheid ended but the towns are now monuments to what happens when the shadow of State Capture replaces the provincial constitutional state making one see what happens when governments go wrong I’ve learnt that you can feel corruption when visiting Eskom There is a lethargy of people and place when an institution is repurposed for taking from rather than giving in service to the country Shops are shuttered, and the economy is informalised. Hawkers’ stalls, a Boxer store, and informal hairdressing salons service people. Cash loan businesses thrive, the money secured by Sassa grant cards, show how the grants economy keeps many rural towns limping along. The tractor seller is the most prosperous business.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Roads in the Eastern Free in poor condition remains a stubborn apartheid spatial distance from the centre when good governance could have mediated the gap The auditor general’s numbers tell the story The development gaps are yawning and getting wider When I completed my book Days of Zondo—The Fight for Freedom from Corruption I searched for light at the end of our dark tunnel “In January 2022, (Ephraim Makhosini) Dhlamini and the other beneficiaries were finally given what was rightly theirs when the Free State handed over the Vrede Dairy Project to them, in one of the small victories against State Capture,” I reported.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads I’m in Vrede to see what happens when State Capture is caught The Vrede Integrated Dairy Project’s grand brick entrance is familiar This is because journalists beat a hot trail there to hear the stories of Dhlamini and other farmers They were told by then Agriculture MEC Mosebenzi Zwane (who would later become the Gupta point man as Mines Minister) to sell their cattle “The locals were taken for a ride,” the State Capture Commission report found and persuaded to sell their cattle on the basis that the government would donate dairy cows to them…” The local farmers didn’t get the cows and were only ever the on-paper owners of Estina A contracted farmer is now running the Vrede Dairy Project on behalf of 61 beneficiaries who manages the farm on behalf of the trust said he had inherited a limping operation with animals in poor health The operation of 202 cows started producing 1,000 litres of milk a day and is up to 4,000 litres now. “There are black farmers who can do things. I trust myself. We have arrived,” Maela told EWN in this interview Maela is trying his best, and Premier Mxolisi Dukwana has also attempted to close the corruption taps He blew the whistle on Magashule and gave necessary evidence before the State Capture Commission This is one of the cows slowly being returned to good health Read more in Daily Maverick: Criminal syndicates operated in the Free State, fleeced the State and collapsed services – ANC political report A dairy farmer who did not want to be named and who works with emerging farms of a similar size says the Vrede farm is underproducing Dairy farming has moved to the Eastern seaboard Dairy farming in Vrede is like pitting a Lesotho pony against a racehorse and it was empty but for the cows and a single foreman Dairy farming equipment at what used to be called the Estina dairy farm The Guptas inflated costs and siphoned off monies meant for local black farmers “A dairy farm doesn’t shut down and go to sleep It’s like being a nurse or a police officer which suggests it is not being optimally run who despatched unqualified underlings to run Estina but more is needed to even consider paying the beneficiaries the dividends they say are their due AmaBhungane reported over the years that animals have died and money has been siphoned into the Free State tender machine but the farm is still a cost centre rather than a profit centre to improve the lives of the first known victims of the state capture years Read more in Daily Maverick: More shocking animal abuse horrors at Gupta-linked Vrede dairy farm one million are on social grants,” says the province’s DA Free State leader maintenance in Vrede is done by local work crews supported by local businesses Jankielsohn has calculated the cost of the dairy project at R7.3-million per beneficiary Even if government had given each person a fraction of that amount it would be much more than a gift card and a meat hamper to make up for their lost cattle When you go through the auditor-general reports for the Free State municipalities wasteful expenditure runs to the billions of rands each year should have catalytic growth effects on provincial economies Ace Magashule’s posters festoon poles across the province as he contests the elections under the banner of his start-up, the African Congress for Transformation. In his stump punt, Magashule’s legacy in the Free State is of a thriving place which still needs him. The story of the Free State’s towns tells a different tale. The State Capture Commission recommended investigations with a view to prosecution for Magashule, the Ozymandias of the province. He is about as far from jail as Mars is from the moon as the National Prosecuting Authority has struggled to mount effective prosecutions in the Free State. DM var d=document,w="https://tally.so/widgets/embed.js",v=function(){"undefined"!=typeof Tally?Tally.loadEmbeds():d.querySelectorAll("iframe[data-tally-src]:not([src])").forEach((function(e){e.src=e.dataset.tallySrc}))};if("undefined"!=typeof Tally)v();else if(d.querySelector('script[src="'+w+'"]')==null){var s=d.createElement("script");s.src=w,s.onload=v,s.onerror=v,d.body.appendChild(s);} I feel the same. Courageous people are doing brave work. I don’t have the skill set for it, but I do have some money, which allows me to be a Daily Maverick insider. I feel like “State Capture” is too mild a term. Can you think of something more catchy to wake potential ANC voters up before election day? Quite frankly, people who vote for the ANC clearly need help thinking. They lack education and basic knowledge about whats happening in the country. Surely 30 years of dismal failure and theft by the ANC is proof enough. I would like DM do a follow up article on this and do a survey of the victims of Estina and see who they intend voting for this election. It wouldn’t surprise me if most of them will still vote for the ANC. Touched a nerve there! One does not need to go to Vrede or the FS to see the decay and witness the devastation brought about by lies, thieving, corruption and mismanagement of the country. Take a walk around your own suburb or re-read this DM article. Maybe you should talk to the people that are not able to put food on the table because of the ANC, or people that are dying in the corridors of non functional hospitals. Ours schools that has a pass rate of 30%, our young people that has started stealing because etc government has run our country into the ground. Maybe you are one of the people that got the 30% pass rate, then I can understand your inability to think for yourself. Oh, the irony of your attack, Titus. Your ‘us-versus-them’ delusions are spilling out. Yes Titus, you stick to your side of the ballot paper, and we will see the destruction of South Africa, obviously you also need to wake up and smell the rot caused by the ANC. You don’t need to be enlightened, clever or superior to understand what a corrupt ANC government has done to the people of this country. You need to look and see what is blatantly obvious. Anyone who votes for the ANC is doing a diservice to all the people (black, white indian and coloured) of this country. Patronising? Maybe that’s what they deserve for what they are condemning the country to. I don’t think Lyle was trying to be insulting Titus. He was merely saying that after 30 years of a downward spiral, it is perplexing that many voters are likely to put their Xs in the ANC block, despite the evidence of fraud, theft and mis-management that is there for all to see. Take a trip to Zimbabwe Titus, and see first hand where we could be in 5 years time. That’s six subjects, Graham, I think you’re a great candidate for the Masters! Not the golf one. You only need a 30% pass rate in South Africa. A gift voucher and some meat. This is how the ANC has run their Third World vision of running a country – we are not far from being Zimbabwe and Venezuela – a future of water trucks, food hampers and dignity packs, with the long sad queues that accompany it. Queues as long as the soon-to-fail NHI’s queues as we watch the same people who destroyed the public health system destroy what’s left. Please vote this scum out of office on May 29 Another successful production bought to you by the ANC. Not on holiday , it is her work, she is a journalist. Good feedback on your election road trip Feral However ruinous you think the ANC is, especially outside the metropolitans, they are actually exponentially worse! The selfishness and coldness they have shown to their own-during the so called lost decade is honestly- leaves one wholly benumbed. 100%. I travel to the eastern Free State and Eastern Cape frequently, and the ANC actually isn’t just cold to the plight of the people – there is a feral hatred of anyone who dares to interrupt their gorging of the public purse: witness the murder of anyone who spills the beans. And witness too, the lack of convictions of those responsible and the paymasters behind the treasonous murders. Absolute, unadulterated evil. Why is it so difficult to get lifestyle audits of our politicians and public office bearers ?? You make a very valid point. The sooner we all realise the simple fact that the political elite are there only to serve themselves, the better. They are mistakenly looked at as our “leaders” when in reality they are elected by us to serve. The gravy train will continue to travel, it’s just the passengers that change Oh, you’re so right Noel. The difference is that the anc has taken it to the extreme. There is corruption everywhere. But in all those other countries, the bridge still gets built. Here, they double the budget, then steal everything. The bridge does not get built, but the double the money is spent. It is a new one to me that Oom Paul Kruger had concubines. There always has been, and there will always be corruption. But it seems to me that the corruption endemic in our country must be pretty spectacular to threaten its’ very existence. “State capture”, “state capture”, “state capture”. Rather 30 years of government failure. It’s not just Durban. Towns like Standerton, Bethal are worse. The whole of the interior is just a shambles. Once you drive off the main highways and out of the big cities it is a sight to behold. It gives you a true reflection of just how much this country has deteriorated and it just breaks your heart. God knows what it will look like in another 20 years. Please all vote sensibly and wisely. Was in Lusaka, Zambia recently and the CBD is much cleaner than Joburg, no potholes at all and the traffic lights are no worse than here, despite 10-14 hours of load shedding a day. I know that in the industrial areas the roads are lousy and in smaller towns in Zambia conditions are appreciably worse than Lusaka, but no more so than most of our small towns have become. Not so terribly negative Ferial, we’re you not ANC you could do much more. Oh dear. Another commentator who doesn’t understand who looks after the “N” routes. It’s SANRAL, dummy. Ace and his cronies “looked after” the R59, which is a provincial road, and by your own admission now a potholed misery. But go ahead and vote for him – it sounds like you’re a kindred spirit of his. All the N roads are Sanral roads – absolutely nothing to do with Magashule and his criminal administration. The provincial ‘R’ roads, on the other hand, were his provincial ambit – and they have collapsed, as you so correctly point out. He did nothing for the Free State or its people, just lorded over it like a personal fiefdom to be looted by him and his crony elite. Oh dear. Such confidence. You don’t even know what you don’t know. Please try and be better. The so called state capture is pure Treason! Stop using soft words for a hard fact! And the tragedy is that on the easter weekend there was ONE person on site. One can donate property / dairy farms etc. but without proper training in agriculture, they will be doomed to fail! Correct, and the same goes if property, particularly farms gets taken away from you by force as the likes of Julius would have it. Then we are really in trouble. Training or not, the assets will just be sold off for quick gain and cease to produce at all. Who at the farm knows or cares that daily milking is essential to keep a cow at maximal milk production. “The Commission of Inquiry into State Capture confirmed that money meant for the project was laundered out of the province to pay for the 2013 Sun City Bollywood wedding of the Gupta daughter, Vega Gupta, to Aakash Jahaggarhia.” I believe that the feasts at this wedding were strictly vegetarian; and the animal abuse on this farm was spectacular. How do Vega and Aakash justify a blessed wedding in the name of the horror it left in its wake. Another year goes by without the main “role players” in state capture appearing in court (apart from several arrests which mean nothing in S.A. as court cases go on for years and years without resolution). Despite what the NPA repeatedly says apropos prosecution of these perps, I’m of the opinion that state capture is a “no go” space for the NPA, no doubt because of political interference. And this is the perfect example of why liberation movements don’t usually make good peace time governments. They feel that cadres need repaying for their loyalty to the cause, at the expense of the very people they supposedly fought for. One correction, Ferial, in an otherwise very good article: “It symbolises how the country has struggled to recover from the lost decade of grand corruption.” The corruption continues unabated, unashamedly, and in many instances, ramped up under the couch stuffing somnambulist: nobody of any consequence has been held properly to account under Ramaphosa, and in many instances, service delivery had continued to decline, jobs continue to be shed and living standards continue to plummet because of Ramaphosa and his insistence on putting party before people – why else is his cabinet stuffed with Zuma-era crooks? I set up a mailbox to import all news items about successful prosecutions of state capture scum when Sleepy Cyril promised us change. It’s still empty. What was it about the lubricated lizard convinced you to go to that effort? Was a metaphorical one. In my head. It’s still empty. Some here would argue that’s not much different to the rest of my head. Magashule will NEVER be prosecuted, because he knows to much about ramauseless and his thieving cadres…BUT BELIEVE ME, THEY WILL ALL PAY THE ULTIMATE PRICE IN HELL FOR ETERNITY!!!!🔥🔥🔥 Has anybody else heard the gushing radio ads by our new Minister of Transport, Sindisiwe Chikunga? The one where she lies through her teeth about the ‘progress’ in our infrastructure? One of the most galling bits is the one where she praises the ANC government for growing the National roads network from 7,000km in 2007 to over 22,000km today! Hmmm …. so the ANC cadre collective is doing a far worse job than the previous lot and yet they get voted in again? What does that say? If the majority of the country votes for ANC or EFF and they coalesce, they deserve every perk that comes with it. If the majority votes for IFP/DA/ActionSA/etc and they coalesce, they similairly deserve every perk that comes with it. Titus, very sad that you attempt to portray the writer as patronising, but do the very same thing by telling them to “stick to their side of the ballot paper”. I know what you mean by that, but why don’t you spell it out so that your prejudice is horribly visible. Ace and crew didn’t vote themselves in over and over. It’s always worth remembering that when casting about for parties to pin the blame on. By the people for the people! A loota continua The zondo commission was just the most expensive example of the multitude of the things we’ve had since the glorious liberation movement started dropping coils on us. They all achieve exactly the same things which are primarily to divert attention and provide time for the gormless electorate to move on and focus on something else. Thank you for the tireless work and well written article with the elections ever closer , although I know most people are now acutely aware of how few have taken much and left little to many , it is yet another warning that they have the choice to end limping along and barely surviving to becoming a prosperous nation capable of giving a better life to all who genuinely seek it. Honestly, I think we as South African are irresponsible, corrupt politicians keep starting new political parties with confidence, because they know people don’t vote for merit. The real victims are the South African taxpayers…. As the saying goes, where there’s a will there’s a way. The ANC cadres don’t seem to have the will. How is it that Ace Magashule is still talking the talk? Magashule and Zwane act loan like they are psychopaths. What they did here will haunt them forever. They have thrown their political limelight into the drain (even though they were never true comrades, they were singers and Mbeki warned us about those who always lead struggle songs, they were Cde Tsotsi from the onset). ' + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.webview_notification_text + ' " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_title + " " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_text + " Sara-Jayne Makwala King16 May 2024 | 14:42A raw deal: Where are the Estina dairy farm victims now?Over a decade later Ferial Haffajee visits the Free State town of Vrede home of the former Estina Dairy Farm and talks to Bruce Whitfield about it.Former ANC Secretary General Ace Magashule in the Bloemfontein High Court on 5 May 2023 for his role of awarding a tender to replace asbestos roofs in Free State Ferial Haffajee's latest Daily Maverick article sees the journalist returning to the scene of the Estina Dairy Farm scandal. Now called the Integrated Vrede Dairy Project, Haffajee calls it the 'original sin site of State Capture'. During the State Capture Enquiry it was revealed that tens of millions of rand, meant to uplift Black farmers in the Free State, was instead misdirected and used to pay for the wedding of Vega Gupta. The State Capture report found that locals were 'taken for a ride' after being convinced to sell their cattle in return for a share in the Estina Dairy Farm and cows donated to them by the government. The cows never materialised and they 'were only ever the on-paper owners of Estina' writes Haffajee. Eleven years on Haffajee says all the beneficiaries have received so far is a R1300 gift card and 5kg of meat.  Sections ActionSA has written to the Provincial Treasury requesting their intervention as the Vrede Integrated Farming Trust has failed to live up to its expectations. It’s evident that this project was never intended to benefit Vrede’s community, instead, it was only ever set up to enrich the Gupta family. Even after the Zondo Commission’s recommendations, the Provincial Department has failed to implement them. They have brazenly defied the Commission. Currently, the farm is operated by a committee appointed by the department without consulting the beneficiaries. On the 22nd of July 2022 the beneficiaries submitted a petition to the department requesting the MEC and the HOD to remove the committee and appoint a qualified Farm Manager and qualified Financial Manager to run the farm, but that request fell on deaf ears. On the 31st of August 2022, the beneficiaries wrote a letter to Mr T.J Masiteng, the HOD of Free State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development requesting him to issue them with their share certificates as the equity shareholders in the Vrede Integrated Farming Trust. This was after the bogus handing over ceremony held on the 14th of January 2022. Thus far, no legal documentation certifies them as the 51% owners of the Trust. This request was also ignored by the department. Clearly this project has not benefited the Vrede Community. R 475 368 000 has been spent this far, which is what compelled the ActionSA to write to the Provincial Treasury requesting them to take over this project and create a viable economic environment. They should further assist with coaching, mentoring and securing market for the beneficiaries. This project should be in the position to economically empower the Vrede community. Furthermore, ActionSA will advocate for the beneficiaries to own 100% of this farm. The initial contract between the Free State Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) indicates that the beneficiaries would own 51% now that Estina is no longer involved in the project, and we believe that there is no reason why they should not own it completely. The people of Vrede deserve a government that will ensure that resources meant for the public good are not plundered by unethical politicians, civil servants, and tenderpreneurs. ActionSA will ensure that every cent of state money is spent on delivering services to the people of South Africa in the interest of building a prosperous and inclusive society. NewsletterExplore the best restaurants Fabio Daniel didn’t take the usual route to the pass Following a career as a pro basketball player funding his wanderlust by working in kitchens along the way It was his now-wife who tempted him to South Africa working his way up from a junior position to head chef Enveloped within the original cellar of one of Stellenbosch’s lauded wine estates his food is a paragon of contemporary French cooking accented by his wordly experience and Brazilian-Italian background with dishes running the gamut from langoustine with black garlic in a nuanced vanilla bisque and tender beef with cauliflower and farofa to a delicate banana desert elevated by dulcey chocolate and miso with sommelier James Mukosi ensuring the perfect pour to accompany it all For relaxed fine dining in a glorious setting Be the first to receive information from Eat Out Create and manage a listing for your restaurant Our reviews are based on anonymous visits that are paid for in full In the heart of the Stellenbosch winelands the recent debut of Stellenbosch Reserve Tasting Room & Restaurant promises a delightful fusion of Mediterranean sophistication and rustic charm the new eatery is enriched with the warmth of home cooking and a commitment to sustainable Located midway between Stellenbosch town and Somerset West Stellenbosch Reserve draws its essence from the former Haskell Vineyards now transformed into a new culinary hot spot The name is a homage to Stellenbosch’s viticultural legacy and its cultural heritage Marketing and hospitality manager for Rust en Vrede Ronda Daniel shares was envisioned as a tribute to his hometown evolving from a single Bordeaux-style blend to seven wines captures the essence of Stellenbosch varieties embodying a beautiful balance between accessibility and seriousness.” designed for seamless pairings with Stellenbosch Reserve wines The wood-fired oven and rotisserie take centre stage thin-based pizzas and perfectly roasted baby chicken The winelist proudly showcases the full spectrum of Stellenbosch Reserve wines while a wider selection from The Stellenbosch Collection is also available for tasting and purchase Historic images of Stellenbosch town adorn the walls as well as vintage harvest baskets brimming with vines that bring elements of the farm into the dining area the flagstone patio covered in dappled shade invites you to linger and enjoy a refreshing glass of wine while soaking up the iconic views Stellenbosch Reserve is open for wine tasting and sales from Tuesday to Sunday, 9am to 5pm, with lunch served between 12pm and 3pm. While not currently open for dinner, plans are underway to extend trading hours in the future. Reservations can be conveniently made online. we recap the Eat Out articles celebrating these four remarkable.. The wine farm crafts award-winning wines that honour both tradition.. Chefs Darren Badenhorst and Callan Austin are set to open Dawn by.. and website in this browser for the next time I comment Please log in to publish reviews and manage your content Statement and invitation for protest actions against the NATO Summit in Den Haag The next NATO Summit will take place in the context of NATO’s greatest crisis since its foundation in 1949 When leaders meet in The Hague from 24th to 25th June they will confront the fact that NATO’s major player and redefining the identities of ‘enemies’ and ‘allies’ in order to pursue its own global strategic agenda Trump’s foreign policy agenda – the isolation and defeat of China – is nothing new but his determination to end NATO’s proxy war with Ukraine has thrown most European leaders into turmoil The past few years have seen vast western spending funnelled into Ukraine’s war effort with the goal of inflicting military defeat on Russia and welcoming Ukraine into NATO membership Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians and Russians have died as a result the slaughter funded by resources stripped from the welfare of citizens of NATO countries plunging millions into poverty and ever greater austerity with the chief beneficiaries being arms traders The crisis in NATO’s European heartlands has not prevented NATO’s continuing and expanding global role its increasing presence on every continent and its growing list of partners and alliances – shaped to support NATO complicity in the US’s anti-China agenda in its quest to maintain global domination The conflict within NATO is accelerating European militarisation which has dramatically expanded with the Ukraine war some European leaders plan massively increased military budgets not just to comply with Trump’s demands but to build a European military alternative to dependence on the US that escalates the crisis and likelihood of war Militarisation of Europe is not new but the scale of the militarization and military spending is It is the preparation of a war against Russia and other ‘strategic rivals’ The No to War – No to NATO Network rejects the agenda for of western military dominance and coercion The spiral of war and military spending has to stop We call for disarmament and a ban on nuclear weapons It’s time for a new global order based on international law We need international cooperation and determination to urgently address the real security problems that this world faces – climate catastrophe we want to emphasize the need for an inclusive security architecture that puts the importance of diplomacy social justice and environmental sustainability at the forefront to achieve peace and security We give our full support and solidarity to the movement in The Netherlands The No to war – No to NATO Network will be an active part of the international events against the NATO summit We will mobilise to support these events and urge all peace-loving peoples to join us to rise to the challenge of building a better world without the NATO war-machine and its structures of oppression De NAVO vormt een voortdurende motor voor militarisering De wereld heeft echter nood aan niet-militaire oplossingen en een versterking van competente internationale platforms voor conflictoplossing gemeenschappelijke veiligheid en duurzame ontwikkeling Schrijf je in op onze digitale nieuwsbrief A former investigator at the Office of the Public Protector gave evidence on Thursday at the Section 194 impeachment inquiry into suspended Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fitness to hold office Raedani worked at the office from 2008 to 2018 under the previous Public Protector, Thuli Madonsela, and also under Mkhwebane. He was a member of the team that dealt with Mkhwebane’s final Vrede report issued in February 2018.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads The advocate said he became involved in the process in November 2017 when he received an instruction from Reginald Ndou his executive manager in the business unit that he would be on the team finalising the investigation report He said that when Mkhwebane revisited Madonsela’s original investigation, there was evidence that Magashule and Zwane were implicated in the Vrede project Both had also ignored an instruction from the Treasury to take disciplinary action with regard to procurement irregularities “They were clearly involved,” Raedani testified to the committee “The National Treasury report was very clear about what the premier and the MEC were supposed to do in terms of preventing any further irregularities,” said Raedani referring to a separate independent report by the Treasury which had flagged irregularities and made recommendations Read more in Daily Maverick: “Mkhwebane ignored Treasury red flags, #Guptaleaks evidence verifying Vrede shakedown, inquiry hears” He said findings had been made against both senior leaders of the province.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads The committee also heard that then DA leader Mmusi Maimane had personally introduced some of the Vrede project beneficiaries to investigators at the Public Protector’s office in 2017 Read more in Daily Maverick: “Public Protector hears of failed promises in Estina dairy scandal” Maimane had requested a meeting on behalf of the beneficiaries who were keen to have the investigation speeded up Maimane had also undertaken to provide the Public Protector with the personal details and contact addresses of all the beneficiaries An undertaking was given to Maimane that the final report would be released “in a few months” Raedani said that by the time the investigation was being finalised “information [the details of beneficiaries] was still outstanding” prepared by him and fellow investigators Tebogo Kekana and Muntu Sithole set out the view that the conclusion of the agreement with Estina (a Gupta money-laundering front) had violated the Constitution and that the accounting officer had acted improperly in inflating prices Read more in Daily Maverick: “Exclusive: Meet the whistleblower taking a stand against Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane” This was also the view at the time of the task team that worked on the Vrede report in January 2018 Visit Daily Maverick’s home page for more news In the week of 5 February 2018, Raedani, Kekana and advocate Isaac Matlawe were summoned by Ndou to a meeting.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove adsadvertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads While Raedani said he had still awaited feedback from Mkhwebane on his memorandum about the investigators’ conclusions Ndou had instructed him to finalise the Vrede report “regardless of the issues that were raised and that we thought were outstanding” Raedani explained that the first draft had been circulated to Ndou after quality assurance checks and then to Ntsumbedzeni Nemasisi a position created under Mkhwebane’s watch of reports from investigative branches being sent to Nemasisi who would “look at these objectively to determine if the reports were reviewable or not” Mkhwebane had called Raedani and Kekena to a meeting where she indicated her displeasure at the work done on the Vrede draft as this had not reflected “her instructions” Mkhwebane and Nemasisi then issued new instructions “on how to amend the report” The two investigators left the meeting and went straight to their offices “and carried out the instructions and amended the report” Tracking changes on the document later revealed that it was Nemasisi who had first added the matter of “diminished resources”, such as financial and capacity constraints, with regard to an inability to track the beneficiaries.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads “Notable changes were made in respect of removing the findings,” Raedani said These were findings of gross irregularity, improper conduct, abuse of power and infringement of the Constitution in respect of the accounting officer’s “procurement activities”.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Previous versions of the draft had contained the finding that the Department of Agriculture had failed to adhere to procurement prescripts while Mkhwebane claimed that the department never entered into a public/private partnership with Estina That no invoices or receipts had been forthcoming — and that neither the head of the Department of Agriculture nor the director of Estina had been questioned — were concerns Nemasisi had correctly raised Photographs had also been removed from the final report on instructions from Mkhwebane Raedani sat down with the Public Protector and other officials and went through the Vrede report “paragraph by paragraph” in preparation for its release the PP took my laptop and typed herself,” he said He had not agreed with these changes, he told the committee, and had warned Mkhwebane “about what legal experts might say” about the report.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads The Vrede report was completed at 1opm and released the following day Mkhwebane was suspended from office on 9 June The parliamentary impeachment hearings got under way on 11 July “Oh what a tangled web we weave when we seek to deceive.” the ANC and their cohorts have never heard this one before obviously just on Nditsheni Raedani’s testimony and in conjunction with the High Court’s setting aside of Mkhwebane’s Vrede Dairy Report there’s sufficient evidence of brazen partiality and misconduct by the ‘Public Protector’ for the Committee to arrive at a decision Continuing with the hearing ‘in the interests of fair play/justice’ is a pointless charade (at taxpayers’ expense) that primarily benefits Mpofu the wicked SSB and the hideous RET/EFF morons and parasites to just muddy the waters Aided and abetted by evil legal scumbags such as Mpofu and company Time to deal with this rubbish once and for all for the sake of this country I agree that it’s all very much a tangled web where the accountable characters can easily hide & fob off intangible facts as mere opinions a small minority of people will read this article &/or will have watched the evidence I would be inclined to draw up a spreadsheet to clearly identify where & why characters such as Magashule The same goes for Mkhwebane & her lieutenants while trying to conceal the RET luminaries’ tracks Unfortunately the truth has a racial undertone which is actively engineered by the likes of Mpofu I can’t help but feel sorry for the witnesses 14 January 2022 nearly a decade after the project started led the official handover of the Vrede Dairy Integrated Farm Project to the 65 verified beneficiaries The handover was in line with Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s recommendations in December 2020, after a report into allegations of maladministration in the Free State Department of Agriculture’s Vrede Integrated Dairy Project in 2017/18.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Daily Maverick previously reported that “Free State DA leader Roy Jankielsohn laid the original complaint about the Vrede Dairy Farm in 2013 after becoming concerned about the high government investment in the project of R342-million – and the ‘confidentiality clause’ that protected the details of its partnership with the Gupta-owned firm Estina.” Addressing members of the Free State legislature and farmers and community members from the area I am grateful that we have the rightful owners of the project taking over the management and the implementation of this project.” by the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) to empower black farmers with the knowledge and skills of operating a successful dairy farming enterprise which would contribute to the local economy and improve the livelihoods of its communities However, the local community didn’t end up benefitting from this project, as they should have.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Instead, “implementing agents” (third parties who take on projects on behalf of the provincial department) were awarded large contracts by the Free State DARD (during Ace Magashule’s tenure), which saw between R250-million and R340-million siphoned out of the local empowerment programme into the bank accounts of Gupta-owned companies and their associates The Free State government announced on 12 January that the handover of the project would be taking place in accordance with a high court order issued on 17 January 2019 The court had given the government exactly two years to conclude the handover “This historic day reminds me of June 1955 as 3,000 people gathered in Kliptown to adopt a very important document which became famously known as the Freedom Charter,” said Ntombela during the handover “One of the tenets of that document is: The Land Shall be Shared Among Those Who Work It “The struggle for land and resources is continuing What our government is doing today is indeed a step in the right direction.” Ntombela explained that the 65 beneficiaries of the project are the legal rightful owners of 51% of the project – with the remaining 49% open to a strategic partner or partners to ensure long-term sustainability of the project MEC for Agriculture and Rural Development Thembeni Nxangisa said that the department and the provincial government have invested over R218-million into the project – which consists of 2,094 hectares of land, 583 dairy animals, nine horses, 10 tractors and milking equipment.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads “All 65 beneficiaries were elated,” said Nxangisa, “they welcomed the handover [of the] project, and they are committed to work closely with the government to make the project a success and create wealth for themselves and their children and grandchildren”.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Ntombela said she visited the project on 12 January 2022 and that these resources will enable the project to farm effectively with dairy and beef cattle While Ntombela was impressed to see 39 youthful general workers including the two managers employed by the project she noted that only 34% of the 65 verified beneficiaries are women and 66% are men “These clearly indicate that there is still much work to be done in ensuring greater participation of women in commercial agriculture,” she said “It will be difficult if impossible to achieve true reconciliation until the land question is addressed comprehensively “According to research the land transferred from whites to blacks between 1994 and 2020 is roughly about 11% which presents a concern for rectifying the injustices of the past.”  When asked how the beneficiaries felt about having to wait nearly a decade to be included in this project, MEC Nxangisa said, “They waited too long. And they acknowledged that it was worth the waiting, realising that we are finally handing the project to them. We are handing their wealth to them.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads “I was saying to them, it means for them today onwards, they are instant millionaires. They must hold on to those shares, they must not sell the farm. They must not sell their shares. It’s a huge investment.”advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads which will work with the farmers for the next three years has undertaken to invest a further R20-million in the farm “We will also be approaching capable funders and other partners that would be working closely with them with their farm [ These partners are those] who have been in business for a very long time who have got the financial muscle to support the project,” said Nxangisa When asked if this type of maladministration and delay would happen again for empowerment projects listing the implementation of the Vrede Integrated Farming Trust The government has already appointed an accountant and a lawyer to assist the farmers A senior manager will be sent to join the team The person will be reporting to the beneficiaries About bloody time – no thanks to the ANC On the corner of Andringa and Church streets in Stellenbosch is where you’ll find the town’s newest wine bar This simplicity carries through to the ambience and décor of the wine bar with beautifully crafted wooden chairs and tables filling the interior and spilling out onto the pavement outside The interior is larger than that of most other wine bars in the area an effect that is further enhanced by large windows thrown wide open to let in the fresh summer breeze under the ancient oak trees that line Andringa Street It’s almost reminiscent of a small town in Europe but Stellenbosch lends it its own unique vibe with cars idling by and students walking hand in hand Take it all in while you enjoy a glass or two of the area’s finest wines The team behind Stellenbosch Wine Bar describes it as “a casual meeting place designed to showcase the wines from the company’s greater portfolio with some shared plates to introduce a Mediterranean way of eating and sharing food It’s a place where you can meet after work for a drink With a number of wine bars already in existence in Stellenbosch doesn’t believe you can ever have enough wine bars in his hometown “We view Stellenbosch as the capital of our wine industry where visitors from all over the world come to experience our wines above all else Stellenbosch needs at least 10 more wine bars We’re in the business of getting people to drink wine and we would ideally like visitors to hop from one wine bar to the next to experience the variety and quality that our wine industry has to offer.” the wine list at Stellenbosch Wine Bar is small but comprehensive with a range of both varietals and prices to suit everyone It’s the home of Stellenbosch Reserve wines (R135–160 per bottle) and the Guardian Peak wines are also well-priced (around R95 a bottle) Other options include the Afrikaans range (either a white or a red blend both available by the bottle and glass) and Cirrus pinot noir which hails all the way from the West Coast grenache noir and a local variety traditionally called steen in South Africa (now more commonly known as chenin blanc) which range from a 2019 syrah (at R320 a bottle) to a 2018 cabernet sauvignon (at R1,100 a bottle) Rounding out the wine list are coffees and a small selection of MCCs and Champagnes this wine bar being from the team at Rust en Vrede you can be sure the food takes centre stage too the ingredients are fresh with nods to the Italian side of Chef Fabio Daniel’s heritage served with freshly made pesto and ciabatta Or go for the quintessential Italian appetiser of bruschetta – either the classic basil and tomato or one with beef tartare Other options include Parma ham with olive marmalade and goat’s cheese herb arancini with a lemon crème fraiche dip Stellenbosch Wine Bar is open seven days a week They will be closed on Christmas and Reconciliation Day Brought to you by Retail Capital. Click here for more new restaurant news. Vrede en Lust is the wine brand owned by software entrepreneur Dana Buys Home base is a grand property on the slopes of Simonsberg between Paarl and Franschhoek while Buys also purchased Casey’s Ridge in cool-climate Elgin in 2005 To date, it has been the wines from Elgin that have tended to impress most, Kogelberg Chenin Blanc 2021 placing Top 10 with a rating of 93 in the recent Prescient Report those traditionally associated with Bordeaux featuring prominently Pinnacle of the range is Napoleonsberg Cabernet Sauvignon the newly released 2019 (price: R700 a bottle) the first since the 2015 vintage pencil shavings and oak spice while the palate has great depth of fruit It’s a wine of big volume but the fruit is succulent and any oak character is not overtly apparent Check out our South African wine ratings database Please read our Comments Policy here When tasting through the barrels of the 2019 harvest we decided we had enough high-quality Cab to portion some off to release the Napoleonsberg again We have upgraded the packaging and it will no longer fall into the Artisan Range so that it can be made available to public Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value" Reviews and Reports are initially reserved for subscribers Get immediate access to exclusive insights and data Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_2" ).setAttribute( "value" Subscribers receive daily reviews and in-depth reports before release to the public SUBSCRIBE NOW Average price of a main course: 6-course menu R890 per person (R1 580 including wine pairing) Opening times: Tuesday to Saturday from 6.30pm Chef Fabio Daniel’s ingenuity lies in his ability to put his Italian-Brazilian heart on a plate using fresh South African ingredients and classic French techniques The evening gets off to an exceptional start with a bread course that is an experience in itself Three different types of bread are each paired with a different butter or spread The deliciously soft and cheesy pão de queijo while the activated charcoal roll is paired with “Romeo and Juliet” a play on a traditional Brazilian treat of guava with cheese Another highlight on the six-course menu is the crème fraîche risotto The Gruberg espuma on top adds a necessary sharpness contrasted by a sweet green apple gel underneath the rice which combines lovely freshness with umami richness It must also be noted that the team goes above and beyond to cater for dietary requirements substituting a completely different dessert for the Rum Diaries if a diner can’t consume alcohol Many wines come from the Rust en Vrede estate itself as well as sister wine farms with a notable mention to a 2018 red that is kept specifically for pairing with the beef course The wine list is extensive and also covers vintages from the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley and the rest of the Stellenbosch Winelands This ensures wines that perfectly complement the variety of dishes The sommeliers are engaged and knowledgeable willingly sharing the history and flavour profile behind each wine warm and professional from the moment you arrive on the Rust en Vrede estate Everyone is determined to ensure guests have a smooth and pleasant experience including chef Fabio who makes regular trips to each table to check on his guests On arrival you’d be forgiven for thinking you’d entered the Tuscan winelands Relax on the vine-covered porch outside with a welcome drink while overlooking the adjoining gorge before making your way into the restaurant which is almost old-fashioned with its white tablecloths and muted lighting Beautiful bricked-framed arch windows allow you to look out on the beautiful greenery even while indoors all adding to the charm of what was once the estate’s cellar Eat Out two-star restaurant Rust en Vrede's head chef Whether you’re a Korean cuisine enthusiast or a first-time.. Indulge in the ultimate seaside dining at Surf Riders Cafe in.. The Ottawa REDBLACKS have re-signed Global linebacker Tyron Vrede to a one-year deal the 28-year-old Vrede appeared in nine games for the REDBLACKS in 2024 10th overall out of North Dakota by the REDBLACKS in the 2021 CFL Global Draft Le ROUGE et NOIR d’Ottawa ont rengagé le secondeur mondial Tyron Vrede pour une période d’un an a pris part à neuf matchs de ROUGE et NOIR en 2024 réalisant 19 plaqués et son premier sac en carrière du Dakota du Nord par le ROUGE et NOIR lors du repêchage mondial de la LCF de 2021 enregistrant 61 plaqués au total et un sac © 2025 CFL ENTERPRISES LP. All rights reserved. Terms Of Use Privacy Policy but her report was still being written at the time The Public Protector’s report linked current Free State premier and newly appointed ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule fellow cadre Mosebenzi Zwane who was then the MEC of Agriculture and Rural Development in the Free State made numerous observations but did not find any evidence of wrongdoing by Magashule the names of Zwane and Gupta did not appear even once She then recommended Magashule should conduct a disciplinary hearing for those involved in the project Her recommendations outraged the opposition parties, who claimed that Mkhwebane was protecting Magashule and the Guptas Cope said that the ANC secretary-general cannot begin a disciplinary process where he’s also implicated in the matter “The persons ultimately responsible for the Estina dairy scandal and the brazen theft and laundering of money are the persons who held executive political office then MEC Mosebenzi Zwane and now secretary-general Ace Magashule,” Cope’s Deidre Carter said Mkhwebane observed that the Head of Department did not follow the normal procurement process as prescribed by the Constitution Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) and national treasury regulations when signing off payments to Estina The public protector also declared that the payments between the department and Estina were invalid because of non-compliance with the procurement process The investigation found that the department’s accounting officer proceeded to pay R143  950-million to Estina even after the accountant-general had investigated found and made recommendations against financial misconduct on the part of the HoD and chief financial officer Mkhwebane also found that no documents or records were provided by the department that prove that proper risk management and financial control of the project were in place She states in the report that the department could not produce actual receipts or invoices to substantiate the expenditure claimed in the financial statements submitted except receipts for the procurement of cattle The report outlined gross negligence and maladministration by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development The Public Protector also wanted to investigate the allegations that the prices for procured goods and services were purposefully inflated; however Mkhwebane said due to financial restraints and lack of resources her team was unable to conduct a comprehensive probe to determine the fair price of goods and services procured by Estina The report left many in shock as it did not live up to expectations The public protector in her defence said they failed to investigate the implicated key role players because her office did not have resources to do so – but the investigation to allegations of maladministration commenced in 2012 under Mkhwebane’s predecessor Thuli Madonsela The claim of lack of resources outraged opposition parties, and Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services has summoned Mkhwebane after reports that she ignored and suppressed evidence implicating Zwane and the Guptas “After four years the public protector simply cannot blame lack of capacity for her embarrassing report,” DA leader Mmusi Maimane said. Maimane’s statement echoed a Business Day editorial which stated that the Public Protector has an annual budget of R626-million and a staff of 300 The DA announced almost immediately that they will apply to the court for a review of the report Submit a report of any corrupt activity you are aware of to Corruption Watch Corruption Watch analyses all reported incidents very thoroughly - all we need is your help Or send us a WhatsApp message on: 082 579 5220 Visit our GivenGain R20 for Change page and help us demand transparency in our systems and better empowerment and protection of whistle-blowers you’ll be supporting our work with communities across the country helping them to know and access their rights and reduce the corruption that robs people of resources intended for their benefit The Free State Department of Education says fire damage to the Intuthuko Katleho Secondary School in Vrede is estimated at R150 million The fire started in the administration block and spread throughout the school Learners have been moved to other schools in the area to continue with teaching and learning Education MEC Tate Makgoe conducted an oversight visit to the school to assess the extent of the damage Makgoe says the school will be fully operational in a month’s time “There is definitely overcrowding in some of the schools We have identified that we’ve got capacity now in the school that’s the part that did not burn down where we can bring within the next two weeks the grade eight and nine (learners) and then we create more space because there are other schools that have extra mobile classrooms so we have identified a space for mobile classes.” says he appreciates the swift response from the Department of Education “I am happy this morning teachers were in class yes of course there are other challenges like overcrowding We talked to the principal of the other school so that we can deal with the issue of overcrowding.” says they had to make sure that academic activities continue despite the challenge of overcrowding Mofokeng says the schools nearby are helping we are willing to see our children continue with studies That’s why we decided to take our children to other schools as ours is burnt down.” Payments to the Sizakele Zuma Foundation in 2014 from a contractor involved in a R100-million housing project in the Free State raise fresh questions about cash flows between businesses involved in lucrative state projects and the Zuma family’s charitable foundations The Sizakele Zuma Foundation was headed by former president Jacob Zuma’s eldest wife, Sizakele “MaKhumalo”.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Scorpio can reveal that Durban businessman Vikash Narsai’s* VNA Consulting had transferred R250,000 to the non-profit on the same day that Narsai’s company received a R17-million upfront payment for building 1,000 low-cost houses in Vrede the Sizakele Zuma Foundation received nearly R345,000 in payments directly linked to the housing deal There are also questions over much larger payments totalling more than R6-million that VNA Consulting had made to two businesses on the back of invoices bearing the name of one of the Sizakele Zuma Foundation’s directors These details are contained in court documents and accompanying financial records Thanks to the Zondo Commission’s first report we now also know that another Zuma non-profit in 2015 received R1.8-million that can be “traced” to Narsai’s VNA Consulting Despite the large upfront payment from the Free State provincial government VNA Consulting and its partners allegedly failed to deliver on their mandate amid claims that a large portion of the money had been misappropriated This journalist’s 2019 book, Gangster State, first examined allegations of a so-called thank you fee paid to former president Zuma in relation to the RDP project.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Sources familiar with the housing development had alleged that then Free State Premier Ace Magashule ensured that some of the proceeds from the provincial contract reached Zuma We are yet to obtain documentary evidence proving that Zuma and Magashule were involved in the alleged scheme but we can now report with certainty that the Sizakele Zuma Foundation received some of the proceeds of the Vrede housing project via VNA Consulting explained that his grandmother’s house should have stood on the empty concrete slab behind him The relevant financial details are contained in a 2015 civil lawsuit the respective parties had settled their differences out of court Durban-based construction firm Tekeweni Civils VNA Consulting’s former consortium partner for the housing project The dispute revolved around an advance payment of R22.5-million that the Free State’s housing department had made to Tekeweni in May 2014. advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Tekeweni had subsequently transferred R17.1-million to VNA Consulting “This payment was to be utilised for setting up, establishing the sites, purchasing the necessary materials to get the job started and for the development of the initial 100 homes,” reads an affidavit by Selvan Moodley, Tekeweni’s co-owner. advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Tekeweni and another consortium partner had been tasked to build 1,000 low-cost houses in Vrede’s Thembalihle township But Moodley quickly became concerned about the “pace at which the development was moving” He later confronted Narsai about the R17.1-million paid to VNA Consulting seeing as “no materials were delivered to the site” After he had hounded an “evasive” Narsai for answers Narsai in September 2015 sent Moodley a “Vrede Project Cost Breakdown” This was more than a year after the upfront payment from the Free State’s Department of Human Settlements and there had been very few completed houses to show for the money Narsai’s cost breakdown was intended to allay Moodley’s fears that VNA Consulting had squandered the money The document showed that VNA Consulting had incurred what it referred to as “expenses” totalling R20.6-million.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads The cost breakdown Vikash Narsai submitted in the court case This consisted of payments to an array of sub-contractors and supposed “suppliers” Among the “suppliers” Narsai had included in his list was the “Sizakeke [sic] Zuma Foundation” which had supposedly received R344,900 in three instalments An email included in the court filings shows that the foundation’s director, Nozipho Maureen Mlotshwa, had contacted Narsai in February 2014.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Mlotshwa has also previously been listed as a contact person for the Jacob Zuma RDP Education Trust The email from Mlotshwa came roughly one month after VNA Consulting and its consortium partners had signed an agreement for the Vrede project “Amount to be paid R33,500 adding R11,400 for the two family funerals Narsai promptly transferred R44,900 to the foundation from VNA Consulting’s account this time with money that emanated directly from the Vrede housing project Tekeweni Civils received the R22.5-million upfront payment from the Free State provincial government on 12 May.  advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Tekeweni transferred R17.1-million to VNA Consulting VNA Consulting then transferred R250,000 to the Sizakele Zuma Foundation Narsai had labelled these payments as “donations” VNA Consulting paid R50,000 into Mlotshwa’s personal account under the transaction description “N Mlotshwa Consulting Fees 1” Narsai included this last figure in the total for all payments he had made to the Sizakele Zuma Foundation even though the money went to Mlotshwa’s own account told Scorpio that her mother was related to “MaKhumalo” Zuma She said she had urged Zuma’s wife to establish the foundation in 2013 after community members had constantly come knocking on the first lady’s door at the Nkandla homestead to ask for financial assistance “I was the one who approached Vikash [Narsai] for a contribution to the foundation and I was not aware that the money was coming from a housing project in Vrede,” she told us The R250,000 went towards school uniforms for children from a local primary school in the Nkandla area Then-president Zuma had accompanied his wife at the handover ceremony held at the school “He [Zuma] didn’t want MaKhumalo to do it alone because she was not good with handling the media and those kinds of things,” explained Mlotshwa The R50,000 VNA Consulting had paid into her own account was for other expenses related to the foundation while the R44,900 payment covered the funeral costs for two Nkandla locals who had died in a car accident “The families of the deceased had asked MaKhumalo for financial assistance,” explained Mlotshwa The payments to the Sizakele Zuma Foundation were small compared with those made to a closed corporation called South West Consulting and to a company called M Sandy Contractors seeing as they were made on the back of invoices bearing the name of the foundation’s director VNA Consulting had transferred R3.75-million to South West and R2.3-million to M Sandy Contractors The payments to both companies were directly linked to the Vrede housing project as evidenced by Narsai’s cost breakdown and the businesses’ respective invoices it had delivered “sub-contract consulting” for the Vrede project The description on M Sandy Contractor’s invoices read “Free State Dept Both sets of invoices included Mlotshwa’s name as the reference person even though she is not listed as a director or member of either business Mlotshwa said she did not know why her name appeared on the invoices it was Langa who had introduced her to Narsai after she had asked her boyfriend if he knew any businesspeople who might donate money to the Sizakele Zuma Foundation She said she didn’t know that Langa’s company had received R2.3-million from VNA Consulting She didn’t know why Mathimba’s business had received R3.75-million from VNA Consulting Mathimba appears to have read a Whatsapp message requesting comment He said he was in a Zoom meeting and vowed to call back later In his answering affidavit in the civil case Narsai made no attempt to explain why the Sizakele Zuma Foundation had been paid as a so-called supplier he offered a somewhat startling explanation for the role M Sandy Contractors and South West Consulting played in the affair The two entities’ “services were required to enable the [Vrede housing] contract to be procured” Scorpio sought a better understanding from Narsai as to how one might “procure” a government contract We also wanted to know why exactly VNA Consulting had paid the Sizakele Zuma Foundation South West Consulting and M Sandy Contractors Narsai chose not to directly address any of these substantive issues our clients respectfully decline to respond any further than they have done from 2019 onwards to your enquiries,” Narsai’s lawyer wrote in a letter “[Narsai and VNA Consulting] have made it clear that they will incorporate [sic] with an authorised investigating authority and the National Prosecuting Authority and stand by that commitment…” reads the letter “The fact that our clients adopt the afore-going approach is not to be construed by yourself the Daily Maverick or any other person or entity as being an admission of the correctness of what you enquire about or that our clients do not have proper answers or explanations which will exonerate them entirely,” added Narsai’s lawyer Read the full response from Narsai’s attorney here Gangster State examined a R2-million payment from Narsai’s VNA Consulting to a business owned by the son of Dudu Myeni a well-known ally of former president Zuma Part 1 of the State Capture Commission’s report has delivered astounding findings in this regard The commission’s forensic investigators had traced the R2-million and determined the following:  after Premier Attraction had received the payment from VNA Consulting Thalente Myeni’s company started making substantial transfers to a business owned by “Mr X” the anonymous witness who had testified about his dealings with Dudu Myeni Mr X’s company had received about R3-million from Myeni’s business This means Premier Attraction must have had other sources of income apart from the R2-million it had received from VNA Consulting On two occasions after Mr X’s company had been paid by Myeni’s Premier Attraction Mr X forwarded the bulk of the money to the Jacob G Zuma Foundation He told the Zondo Commission that this was done on Dudu Myeni’s instruction Premier Attraction paid R1.15-million to Mr X’s company Mr X paid R1-million to the Jacob G Zuma Foundation Premier Attraction paid exactly R1-million to the company owned by Mr X Mr X paid R800,000 to the former president’s foundation The Zondo Commission seems certain that these payments all emanate from the Vrede housing project “The Commission traced the money that Mr X had received from Mr Thalente Myeni’s business to a R2-million payment from VNA Consulting VNA Consulting had been involved in a housing project in the Free State Province and had used some of the monies it received on that project to pay Mr Myeni’s business the money appears to have originated from the Free State government’s coffers then to Mr Myeni’s business ‘Premier Attraction’ into the bank account for the Jacob Zuma Foundation,” according to the commission’s findings The report recommended further investigation into these cash flows “It is clear from that statement that the commission made no findings of its own as to whether there was a corrupt relationship and required the matter to be investigated to ascertain whether the same existed or not,” countered Narsai’s attorney Dudu and Thalenthe Myeni both ignored our requests for comment Speaking on behalf of the Jacob G Zuma Foundation Mzwanele Manyi said the State Capture report did not contain any evidence of the payments made to the foundation  “[I] cannot respond without you backing up your allegations The ball is firmly in your court,” said Manyi only 166 had been completed by November 2018 The Free State Department of Human Settlements eventually appointed another contractor to finish the job despite the large prepayment that had found its way to VNA Consulting *Vikash Narsai and his company in 2019 instituted legal proceedings against Pieter-Louis Myburgh and Penguin Random House Narsai and VNA Consulting allege that the relevant chapter is defamatory and are seeking R10-million in damages The case is ongoing in the high court in Durban This story first appeared in our weekly Daily Maverick 168 newspaper which is available for R25 at Pick n Pay, Exclusive Books and airport bookstores. For your nearest stockist, please click here One has to laugh these Africans complain about Indians but they seem to have no problem giving them tenders or taking instructions from a Gupta when are you getting off your behind and do your job She is either extremely bad at her job or her bosses are giving go-slow instructions It seems that we’re going to be in a never ending cycle of malfeasance Every single government contract is tainted in some way or another and this will continue until some big fish are prosecuted because they provide the political cover was made Alexkor chairperson at the height of state capture at Alexkor SARS should have been asking questions but is obviously why it was broken apart It is an a never ending roll call of -malfeasance One wonders if it will finish even if there is no more left to loot the NPA is seemingly not acting on any of it Meanwhile they all are super rich while the locals starve!….and still riot in their names ANC have to be voted out otherwise it will just go down the tubes Mosebenzi Zwane and his co-accused made a brief first appearance in the Free State high court in Bloemfontein on Wednesday morning in connection with the R280-million Estina Dairy project fraud and corruption case Charges against one of the former accused companies — at the centre of the Vrede Dairy project — Estina have been withdrawn in the Magistrates’ court since it is under liquidation. advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads The case has been postponed to 21 April 2023 for a pre-trial conference The matter was transferred to the Free State high court in Bloemfontein in November last year former Sahara employee Ugeshni Govender and director of Gupta-owned company Islandsite Investments One Hundred and Eighty Zwane confirmed to Daily Maverick that he had stepped aside from ANC duties and was no longer active as chairperson of the Transport portfolio committee Zwane was arrested on 28 September last year before appearing in Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court along with Govender and Ragavan and Zwane and Govender were both released on R10,000 bail each was warned to appear in court when the matter resumed on 2 November last year Masiteng and Vasram to the case in November last year — as well as seven companies money laundering and contravention of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) The charges emanate from the Vrede Dairy project scandal in which the Free State government unlawfully paid the Gupta family’s company Estina more than R280-million for nothing in return The public funds which were meant to benefit disadvantaged black farmers in the province were allegedly looted for the ultimate benefit of the Guptas The Vrede Dairy project was conceptualised by Zwane who was Free State agricultural MEC at the time In the State Capture commission’s final report, Chief Justice Raymond Zondo singled out Zwane Thabethe and suspended ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule who was the Free State Premier at the time as the primary architects behind the looting of the provincial department of agriculture through Estina Speaking to Daily Maverick after appearing in court on Wednesday Zwane said he was just hoping to get his day in court and reminded journalists that he is just an accused in the case smiling as if he’s the great benefactor and only sees himself as the accused Him and Clowny… two delusional idiots The State Capture commission made a range of recommendations to prevent corrupt projects like the Estina Vrede Dairy Farm project in future South Africa’s agricultural community wants heads to roll over the Estina Vrede Dairy Farm project While waiting for law enforcement authorities to act on the recommendations of the Zondo commission report some farmers remain concerned about the people whose lives were supposed to be improved by the project Speaking to Food For Mzansi following the damning reports on state capture Agri SA’s executive director Christo van der Rheede said the agriculture organisation is highly perturbed about the findings on the project According to the report the project collapsed because former provincial department head Peter Thabethe failed to do his job He also failed to protect the interests and assets of the department and taxpayers’ money Former Free State MEC of agriculture Mosebenzi Zwane and former premier Ace Magashule have also been implicated in the corruption which beset the diary project ALSO READ: ICYMI: Zondo releases report on Vrede Dairy Project “We trust that those guilty of mismanaging the project will be brought to book It is unacceptable that land reform projects and taxpayers’ money are abused in this way,” Van der Rheede said “Agri SA is calling on the Presidency to investigate all land reform projects to ensure that the beneficiaries of such projects do really benefit.” He said whilst the country is facing a high rate of unemployment and local food insecurity any land reform projects should be taken seriously to overcome the legacies of the past Agri SA is calling on consequence management to be applied without fear or favour “South Africa can no longer afford poorly executed and badly implemented or ill-supported land reform projects,” Van der Rheede stated a farmer whose farm is adjacent to the Estina dairy farm the diary project was doomed from the start Wessels says that proper research and feasibility studies were not conducted and that officials opted not to listen to local farmers’ advice on what kind of farming could benefit the farmers most “The project of farming diary in Vrede was not going to make money Nestlé dairy factories [In Vrede] closed many years ago because of the business not being profitable We advised leaders who were here to rather consider beef farming,” Wessels said The only dairy processing facility in the Free State is based in Harrismith roads and suppliers in the area made dairy farming unsustainable Potential suppliers were far away and therefore it made little economic sense to continue with dairy production Wessels said efforts were made to engage the provincial department of agriculture and local government to re-think the idea of a dairy farming project “Our reasons were that Vrede is cold and not conducive to such farming Who were they going to sell to if they start such projects Our inputs were not about who must be given the projects but what type of projects will benefit the community.” “They failed to utilise an opportunity of coming up with a more profitable business plan but opted for something that is not economically and financially feasible,” he said PODCAST: Dairy industry still optimistic, despite hurdles Saamtrek Saamwerk coordinator Sehularo Sehularo has called on heads to roll over the Estina project “We cannot have over R200 million of taxpayer’s money being misused and it is business as usual Resources were used and nothing came out of it “This could have been avoided or picked up if we had strong oversight committees in the legislature and black farmers have still not progressed,” he said National African Farmers Union president Motsepe Matlala said the collapse of the project was not unique “There are many other projects that failed in provinces like Limpopo North West and Mpumalanga that were running into billions The only difference here is that it had high profile politicians.” “Government needs to stop with the middleman type of system and trust us as farmers to do our own businesses We want action to be taken against those responsible,” he said Sign up for Mzansi Today: Your daily take on the news and happenings from the agriculture value chain Tshianeo Mathidi in Venda is cultivating more than just potatoes – he's growing back a family legacy.. With 21 global awards in the first six years of its existence Food For Mzansi is much more than an agriculture publication unashamedly saluting the unsung heroes of South African agriculture We believe in the power of agriculture to promote nation building and social cohesion by telling stories that are often overlooked by broader society Contact usOffice: +27 21 879 1824News: info@foodformzansi.co.zaAdvertising: sales@foodformzansi.co.za chief justice Raymond Zondo decries the lack of accountability by senior government officials including the suspended ANC secretary-general and former Free State premier Ace Magashule Image: THULI DLAMINI The official decision makers behind the Vrede dairy farm project debacle are “fraudsters” This was the finding of chief justice Raymond Zondo in his final report into the capture of the state calling the former head of the Free State agriculture department which cost the provincial agricultural department hundreds of millions of rand which was earmarked for emerging black Free State dairy farmers who were in the end left destitute as a result of the looting was channelled through multiple offshore companies linked to the Guptas with a portion going towards the family’s lavish wedding at Sun City Zondo decried the lack of accountability by senior government officials including the suspended and corruption-accused ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule and disgraced Free State agriculture MEC Mosebenzi Zwane never mind dairy farming or the crucial milk processing” before its appointment “The core business of the company on the date of its appointment was still stated as ‘business consultant’ There is an allegation that its business was in the field of IT before the appointment.” when it was appointed implementing agent of the Vrede project Vasram was the retail sales manager at Sahara Computers.  He had no farming or agricultural experience “The director is the only decision maker within the company The decision to entrust such a big government project to the decision making power of a single person simply does not make sense “Evidence of at least one witness suggests that its representatives accompanied the senior representatives of DARD [department of agriculture and rural development] on a trip to India the HOD [Thabethe] in his report makes no mention of representatives of the company having travelled or accompanied him “If Estina went on the trip with government Zondo accused those appointed to manage the  project of not knowing what they were doing a method which cost the government a lot of money This is about the only explanation one can give for the death of many dairy cows at the beginning of the project and the negligent and environmentally hazardous manner in which the carcasses were disposed of.” He said the reason Estina was the sole provider for the services procured “is unsustainable in the light of the fact that there were and still are milk farmers in the Free State and in the vicinity of Vrede” Even in the case of Estina being a sole provider he said the prescripts for procurement required certain procedures to be followed “The HOD [Thabethe] decided on appointing the company and instructed his juniors to prepare a submission for him to approve the deviation The decision to deviate was clearly taken before reasons for doing so were identified “Estina was appointed without DARD having conducted any due diligence about it.” Estina was appointed by the CEO of the Indian-based company Paras to represent Paras in SA and in contracting with the department “He [Thabethe] says the company he actually wanted to contract with was Paras He was therefore less concerned about the competence of Estina and believed that through it he secured the expertise in Paras.” He said if Thabethe wanted to secure a contract with Paras “The process he followed is open to question, probably at more levels than one Through desktop research he identifies one company in India visits that company for one day and makes up his mind to appoint it Zondo said the absence of any monitoring of the utilisation of public funds once paid to Estina made matters even worse “The attitude of the [Estina] CEO is that a particular file with some invoices given to DARD by Estina constituted all the accounting by Estina “He [Thabethe] maintained once the money has been paid over to a farmer beneficiary then the government has discharged its obligation as the money belongs to the beneficiary.” Zondo said the Estinia contract “was clearly a misnomer or part of a scheme to siphon public funds out of the government purse” to benefit the chosen private entities “The reasonable suspicion is that its director had some close relationship with someone in government who had an influence on the decision to appoint the implementing agent “The company was given carte blanche with powers .. The shareholders of the company have not been identified Could some in government have been sleeping shareholders The company had only one director at all material times but the DARD entrusted it with the power to manage a R500m project “DARD was prepared to pour public funds into the entity without exercising authority or monitoring how the funds were expended.” Zondo said while it was unclear whether Zwane had approved the Estina agreement “it is most likely that at the very least he was informed and had no difficulties [with it]” He said the agreement signed with the government committed it [government] to spending funds it had not budgeted for He said the proposal made to the department first was that Paras and not Estina would implement the project “Estina was mentioned only in one or two lines If that proposal was the basis for the appointment it constituted the biggest fraud committed against government because it induced the government to commit a project of half a billion rand and eventually made payment to an entity which did not at all qualify to be appointed.” Zondo said while Thabethe claimed to have been the one to advise Paras to use an SA-registered company “if he did not introduce Estina to Paras then he had a duty to ensure that the SA company was properly qualified The contract should have had at its core the securing of investment “If fraud was committed against the government must have been the perpetrator or core perpetrator .. secured its commitment and represented to government that it was safe for it to approve “Absent fraud committed against the government then all those involved collaborated and colluded in siphoning and channelling public coffers to an incompetent entity without a shred of accountability The official decision makers became the fraudsters.” Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month. Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now Please read our Comment Policy before commenting The farm was established in 2012 by the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (Dard) to empower black farmers with the knowledge and skills of operating a successful dairy farming enterprise The handover was in line with Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s recommendations in December 2020, after a report into allegations of maladministration in the Free State Department of Agriculture’s Vrede Integrated Dairy Project in 2017/18 But now the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSPCA) has received information that the dairy cows were being left without food What they found when they visited the farm was disturbing Four cows were so emaciated they could not move None had received the urgent veterinary attention required Some cows were so emaciated they could not move Inspectors instructed the staff to urgently contact an emergency vet.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads the farm chose to try and contact a state veterinarian knowing full well that state veterinarians do not work over weekends It is questionable as to why a privately run dairy farm would depend on the services of a state veterinarian.” As a result the NSPCA had to euthanise all four cows to prevent further suffering Calves were unfed and suffering from diarrhoea.(Photo: NSPCA) the NSPCA conducted a follow-up inspection and were horrified to find even more animal cruelty One of the cows was found suffering from an untreated eye infection and had maggots eating away at her eyeball Two more cows had to be euthanized to prevent further suffering One was found struggling to breathe and hadn’t been able to move for three days The other had a broken leg that hadn’t healed properly Neither of the three cows had received any recent veterinary attention The inspectors also found calves suffering from diarrhoea They were without sufficient access to drinking water and feed and were being kept in dirty living conditions Cows had to be euthanized to prevent further suffering.(Photo: NSPCA) “It is baffling,” said NSPCA in a statement “how a project that is allegedly worth tens of millions of rands has failed to provide these basic needs for their animals “These are the same animals that farmers expect to help them make a profit at the end of the day it is likely that the farm could have let the animals suffer slow and painful deaths The NSPCA will be laying criminal charges of animal cruelty in terms of the Animals Protection Act The animals that remain on the farm will continue to be monitored Shame on all involved in causing the suffering Thank you the NSPCA and the DM for exposing these atrocities Horrible human beings that let this happen to innocent animals that can not help themselves So Vrede project beneficiaries learnt no animal husbandry which was the alleged purpose of the project Lock these people on the farm and leave them there for 8 months without food and water too You can read the entire submission here “As far as the Gupta family’s involvement in the [dairy] project is concerned, I wish to categorically state that they are not involved in any manner in this project.”advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads when he was asked about the Vrede Dairy Project back in 2013 A deep dive into the #GuptaLeaks has provided detailed and damning evidence showing that the Guptas was involved at all stages of this benighted project Our submission has revealed the fingerprints of the Gupta enterprise all over the conceptualisation initiation and management of the Vrede Dairy Project signed as Estina’s “Managing Director” in a whole series of vital contracts that initiated the dairy project including the two contracts between Estina and the Free State Department of Agriculture that formalised the project had already shared a historical business relationship with the Gupta enterprise Documents and spreadsheets from the #GuptaLeaks show that Gautam was a director and shareholder in an Indian company called Gateway Infrastructure for years prior to Estina The other directors and shareholders of Gateway were Anil Gupta and Kamal Singhala Gautam also shows up in the #GuptaLeaks in relation to another key player in the Estina scandal: Paras Dairy was supposed to be Estina’s partner in the Vrede dairy farm providing the actual on-the-ground expertise to run the project the Head of Department for the Free State Department of Agriculture it was Paras’s supposed partnership with Estina that led the Free State government to give the contracts to Estina When the project finally got off the ground the day-to-day management of the project was given over to Chandrama Prasad During testimony before the Zondo commission the Vrede businessman Willie Basson claimed that Prasad clearly had no agricultural expertise leading to the death of a large number of cattle from malnutrition If Prasad had no agricultural expertise to speak of The #GuptaLeaks show that Prasad had business and other dealings with the Guptas long before Estina ever took off Internal accounting records show that a Gupta-controlled company registered in India — LCR Investments — had lent Prasad money prior to the Vrede Dairy Project’s existence Other emails from the leaks show that Gupta companies in South Africa were assisting Prasad secure business visas to visit South Africa a year after the Vrede Project was started The Gupta fingerprints were all over other aspects of the day-to-day running of the Vrede Project. In 2014, Estina imported dairy processing equipment from India. Basson recalled that, when the equipment was unloaded, it was old and decrepit, with rust falling off like “fish scales”.advertisementDon't want to see this? Remove ads Organising the importation of the equipment into South Africa turned out to be too great a logistical challenge for Estina leading Bansal to write a series of panicked emails to all and sundry In stepped employees of the Gupta-owned Sahara Computers who went about negotiating and finalising the arrangements to have the equipment imported into South Africa So the only time that Estina was involved in actually buying and setting up dairy equipment they bought the equipment from a connection of Tony Gupta’s and had to get Sahara employees to manage the whole process The relationship between Vasram and the Guptas took on a financial dimension a month prior to the first meeting at the Saxonwold compound From March 2011 until at least September 2012 Vasram submitted monthly invoices to Linkway Trading the Gupta company that was used to pay for the infamous Sun City nuptials of Vega Gupta and Aakash Jahajgarhia using Estina cash who was still working full-time as an IT salesman for Intel charged Linkway R11,000 a month for opaque “services rendered.” The names of two Free State officials loom large over the entire Vrede debacle: Peter Thabethe and Mosebenzi Zwane was the Head of Department at the Free State Department of Agriculture and a major player driving the project forward and his inability to cogently explain a raft of odd decisions formed the basis of a number of days of excruciating testimony before the Zondo commission During Thabethe’s increasingly fractious grilling by the evidence leader Advocate Leah Gcabashe he wove a beguiling story of how he had identified India’s Paras Dairy as the exact partner he wanted to work with in South Africa (through Estina Central to this story was a now-notorious trip that Thabethe took to India in March 2012 three months prior to the project being awarded to Estina There were two particularly contentious elements of Thabethe’s India trip The first was how Thabethe had managed to get on the plane to India with such speed: his trip was only approved by Ace Magashule While advocate Gcabashe focused on how he was able to get a ticket so quickly an equally important question was: how did Thabethe get a visa to India in the course of a day Ashu Chawla drafted a letter on the letterhead of a Gupta company based in India to the “Visa Counsellor” at the Indian High Commission in Johannesburg The body of the email asked that Thabethe be given a visa to visit India between 29 February and 3 March 2012 — the exact dates Thabethe eventually flew wanted to “visit India for business opportunities” after repeating Thabethe’s passport number that “SES Technologies Ltd will assist with all their requirements while stay [sic] in India” The other contentious issue revolved around the fact that Thabethe was accompanied on his trip by Ashok Narayan both of whom had their tickets paid for by the Free State government was an absolutely central player in the entire Gupta enterprise including exercising day-to-day control over aspects of Estina’s business and finances On the day the trip was approved by Magashule who was then still an employee of the Gupta enterprise was appointed to a bizarre Premier “advisory council” by Ace Magashule Narayan’s appointment only became official on the 1 March when Thabethe and Narayan were already in India When pressed by advocate Gcabashe as to why Narayan accompanied him Thabethe eventually confirmed that it was Mosebenzi Zwane who told him to include Narayan and conceded that he should have asked why Narayan was accompanying him which he failed to do — a particularly strange failing as Thabethe claimed not to have known who Narayan was before the trip I should have questioned… But I didn’t question,” Thabethe told Judge Zondo But it is fairly shredded by one email from deep in the #GuptaLeaks archive that we have included in our submission to the Zondo commission Ashok Narayan wrote to Peter Thabethe’s private Hotmail account Narayan sent Thabethe an invite to attend The New Age Friendship Celebration in Durban to honour 150 years of friendship between South Africa and India The email made it clear that Narayan and Thabethe had already talked and that they planned to meet during the event — 13 months before they took their trip to India together Zwane’s role in the Vrede project was also vital and extended beyond telling Thabethe who to invite to what According to multiple testimonies before Judge Zondo Zwane attended a number of meetings with Vrede locals to sell the potential project He was also part of the Free State Provincial Exco that approved the Estina project he delegated authority that had been given to him by Ace Magashule to allow Peter Thabethe to sign an outrageous 99-year lease agreement between Estina and the Free State Department of Agriculture just how Zwane was apparently rewarded for his consistent support for Estina In the month following the signing of the 99-year lease agreement Sahara Computers and Linkway Trading sent Zwane and his over 20-strong gospel choir on a weeklong jaunt to India where they had dinner at Tony Gupta’s house and toured the Taj Mahal Zwane and his choir were joined on the trip by Ashok Narayan and one Innocentia Tshegofatso Tshegofatso — who also went by Tshegofatso Inno Motaung — was an employee of the Free State Department of Agriculture at the time who were probing why she was later appointed to the Department of Public Enterprises during their investigation into Transnet and Trillian drily noted that “Motaung confirmed that she and Zwane have a child together.” Although certain key information is still missing show that Gupta companies spent over R500,000 paying for the flights and accommodation of Zwane and his choral entourage Zwane failed to declare any of these benefits the Estina/Vrede Dairy Project was only one of a number of Gupta projects that flowed from their almost total capture of the Free State we argue that the Estina project was similar in conception and execution to at least three other major projects that were to be paid for by the Free State government Two of the most notable projects were the purchase of laptops by the Free State Office of the Premier which were to be given to university students in the province how those contracts were awarded by Sunbay Trading which acted as a front for Sahara Computers and was controlled by none other than Kamal Vasram provide some added detail to an already sordid story showing that the Free State government was massively overcharged for some run-of-the-mill laptops Sunbay charged the Free State government R3.8-million for laptops that cost Sahara only R1.7-million to buy from Toshiba (where Vasram was then working full-time as a salesperson Another project that has received considerable media attention is the Cureva/Mediosa mobile medical unit debacle in which Cureva/Mediosa were contracted to provide a medical testing facility on buses that would travel the Free State to prod and poke local residents our submission adds some additional depressing detail on to the bones of the scandal through which the Free State government paid at least R20-million was awarded on the basis that Cureva/Mediosa would be paid R954 per patient tested Emails we have found in the #GuptaLeaks show that a key Cureva/Mediosa employee had done their own cost calculations They showed that the total all-in cost incurred by Cureva/Mediosa was a mere R352 per patient Cureva/Mediosa would thus earn a ridiculous R602 profit — 171% But the real proof of how the Estina/Vrede Project was conceived and run to the benefit of the Guptas can be found in the convoluted banking records of Estina and the Gupta’s offshore network in Dubai These show that the vast majority of the money that was paid to Estina by the Free State government was almost immediately laundered into accounts controlled by the Gupta enterprise leaving only a tiny fraction of money to run a down-at-heel dairy farm and how the Guptas set up their laundering networks to foil South African investigators