The former head of Gauteng’s human settlement department, who later became the director general of for the national department of water and sanitation, has been arrested for the kickbacks relating to the 2014 Free State asbestos deal.
Margaret-Ann Diedricks, 56, was arrested on Wednesday over alleged kickbacks totalling more than R7 million and will now be joining suspended ANC secretary general Ace Magashule and businessman Edwin Sodi in the dock.
The alleged corrupt payments to Diedricks were made by controversial businessman Edwin Sodi’s Blackhead Consulting company, one of the companies involved in the R255 million asbestos audit contract.
Captain Christoper Singo, the Hawks spokesperson said the Hawks’ Serious Corruption Investigation team in Bloemfontein arrested the 56-year-old woman on Wednesday in Alberton.
Singo added: “It is alleged that during the period of 2014 and 2017, an irregular contract was awarded to a service provider for the eradication of asbestos roofs by the Department of Human Settlements, Free State.
The suspect, who was the acting HOD of the Department of Human Settlements in Gauteng also authorised the same service provider irregularly in Gauteng. She then fraudulently received an amount of more than R7 million from the service provider.”
Diedricks is expected to in the high court in Bloemfontein on Thursday to face charges of fraud, corruption money laundering and contravening the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA).
Source: News24, Daily Maverick, image from Daily Maverick