AG FANISILE MABILA ARRESTED FOR FRAUD

L-R: Accountant General Fanisile Mabila and her co-accused Thandi Dlamini leaving the Mbabane Magistrates Court after their appearance yesterday.

MBABANE – If the public was under the impression that the Public Accounts Committee was ineffective, it better think again.

Just a week after tabling its report, Accountant General (AG) Fanisile Mabila has been locked up. Mabila has been arrested with three others by police under the Fraud Department for alleged fraud amounting to over E200 000.
She was arrested together with Principal Accountant in the Ministry of Natural Resources Thandi Dlamini and two employees under her (Mabila) department Sijabulile Dlamini and Zanele Dlamini. They are facing eight charges, which include fraud and forgery.

Last week, the PAC recommended that Mabila be reported to the ACC after she allegedly fraudulently purchased personal computer gadgets under the pretext that she was purchasing staff uniform for employees under the Treasury Department.

The computer gadgets were purchased from Data Networks Services (DATANET).
Mabila and her co-accused yesterday appeared before Mbabane Magistrate Sifiso Vilakati after spending a night at the Mbabane Police Station. Prosecutor Dolly Shongwe yesterday applied that they be remanded back to custody until next week.

The PAC recommended that the Principal Secretary at the Ministry of Finance, Bheki Bhembe, refers the matter to the Minister of Finance Martin Dlamini and the Civil Service Commission (CSC) for disciplinary action.
Bhembe was further advised to report the matter to the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) as well as the Fraud and Commercial Crimes Unit for further investigations.

In a report tabled by Chairperson Thulisile Dladla of the PAC in the House of Assembly the PAC said the AG’s behaviour exhibited traits of fraud yet the office she occupied required officers of honour and high integrity.
“As much as the AG insists that government did not suffer any loss, this fraudulent act in itself displays severe dishonesty as it might not be known how much expenditure occurred in this manner,” reads the report, which is yet to be debated and adopted by the House.

The report reveals that the computer gadgets were purchased from Data Net after it was gathered that the principal accountant – fraud and losses approached Data Net and came up with the idea that the company should get a quotation from a boutique, which would give the impression that the money was being paid for non-existent uniforms.

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