Mbabane- Corruption seems to be the order of the day at CTA Mbabane depot as four government vehicles were stolen at broad daylight to be stripped and repainted in a makeshift private garage in Zulwini.
The cars are said to have been brought to CTA Mbabane depot, from different government ministries to be fixed but were secretly towed away to the garage in Zulwini. The cars are a Isuzu double cab, two Isuzu flat base and a Chevrolet Cruz from different government ministries, including Ministry of Commerce.
The makeshift garage was alleged to have been given authority to fix government cars without following the right procedure by a senior cartel at CTA. Senior Workshop Inspector Mabandla Dladla was bypassed by the cartel when the cars were stolen yet the right protocol says that he (Dladla) is the one who is to authorize moving of cars outside the CTA garage.
The cartel is said to be regularly bypassing laid down procedures for fixing government cars, as they would threaten any officer who tries to challenge their corrupt acts. One of the procedures is that the Senior Workshop Inspector is supposed to go and evaluate the garage and the staff. Also to check if the garage has insurance, just in case the cars get stolen or fire burns the garage. It is alleged that none of those procedures were followed when granting the garage authority to fix government cars.
The makeshift garage known to this publication was initially based at Zulwini but later moved to Matsapha. The owner of this garage is alleged to be connected to the CTA cartel which made it easier for the garage to be granted authority without following the right procedure.
The Senior Workshop Inspector upon realizing that the cars were missing, then tracked their whereabouts, which led him to Zulwini. The Inspector is said to have been locked out of the gate when he got to the garage, blocking him from accessing the stolen cars. It was then that he went to report at the Lobamba Police Station and the police impounded the cars from the garage.
“When the Senior Workshop Inspector went to find the cars at the Zulwini garage, they locked him out because they realised that they have been caught. He then reported to the Lobamba Police Station and an order to impound the cars was given. As we speak, the cars are parked at Lobamba Police Station.” A shop steward at CTA, who preferred anonymity said.
He also mentioned that one of the cars was used to steal petrol at CTA outlets and was driven by someone who is not even a government employee. He said the car would sometimes refill about four times a day at different CTA depots as the then system was manipulative. The officer who would draft the authority to refill the car is known to this publication. The matter is said to be currently being investigated by serious crime police team known as Tingculungculu and the Anti-Corruption Commission.
Efforts to get comments from relevant authorities in the Ministry of Public Works proved futile as the journalist was sent from pillar to post.
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