Head of national department of health communications Popo Maja was granted R5,000 bail by the Pretoria specialised commercial crime court on Tuesday after being implicated in the Digital Vibes scandal.
He faces two counts of corruption amounting to R15,000.
"It is alleged that in 2019, Maja was appointed as a member of the bid specification and bid evaluation committee. The committee was tasked to appoint a service provider to provide communication services in relation to the National Health Insurance (NHI) bill," said National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana.
"It is alleged that on November 1 2019, bid evaluation committee members sat to evaluate bidders ... after Digital Vibes was recommended to be contracted the bid amount of over R141m for 12 months."
The same day, it is alleged R10,000 was paid into Maja’s personal bank account from Digital Vibes' bank account.
On December 5 2019, R5,000 was paid into his account by Digital Vibes.
Prosecutor Phumla Dwane-Alpman did not oppose bail. However, she asked the court for R10,000 bail and that Maja hand in his private and official passports. She also requested the court order he inform the investigating officer when travelling outside Gauteng and that Maja not interfere with state witnesses, Mahanjana said.
"However, his attorney told the court Maja had already been demoted at work in relation to the matter and could only afford R5,000. He also told the court Maja had co-operated with the state since the inception of the matter and was therefore not a flight risk."
The matter was postponed to July 19 2023 for disclosure of contents of the docket.
TimesLIVE
Health spokesperson Popo Maja out on R5,000 bail after being implicated in Digital Vibes scandal
Image: 123RF/HXDBZXY
Head of national department of health communications Popo Maja was granted R5,000 bail by the Pretoria specialised commercial crime court on Tuesday after being implicated in the Digital Vibes scandal.
He faces two counts of corruption amounting to R15,000.
"It is alleged that in 2019, Maja was appointed as a member of the bid specification and bid evaluation committee. The committee was tasked to appoint a service provider to provide communication services in relation to the National Health Insurance (NHI) bill," said National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) regional spokesperson Lumka Mahanjana.
"It is alleged that on November 1 2019, bid evaluation committee members sat to evaluate bidders ... after Digital Vibes was recommended to be contracted the bid amount of over R141m for 12 months."
The same day, it is alleged R10,000 was paid into Maja’s personal bank account from Digital Vibes' bank account.
On December 5 2019, R5,000 was paid into his account by Digital Vibes.
Prosecutor Phumla Dwane-Alpman did not oppose bail. However, she asked the court for R10,000 bail and that Maja hand in his private and official passports. She also requested the court order he inform the investigating officer when travelling outside Gauteng and that Maja not interfere with state witnesses, Mahanjana said.
"However, his attorney told the court Maja had already been demoted at work in relation to the matter and could only afford R5,000. He also told the court Maja had co-operated with the state since the inception of the matter and was therefore not a flight risk."
The matter was postponed to July 19 2023 for disclosure of contents of the docket.
TimesLIVE
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