Issued by Daniela Ellerbeck on behalf of the FW de Klerk Foundation on 12/09/2025

The FW de Klerk Foundation welcomes the Special Tribunal’s ruling declaring unlawful and invalid Mogalakwena Local Municipality’s award of a R167,9 million tender to Easyway, Tarmac, Pave and Projects CC (“Easyway”). The tender was for supply, delivery, installation and/or construction of borehole development, storage reservoirs and bulk gravity supply pipelines.

The Tribunal set aside the contract and ordered Easyway to repay R68,8 million plus 10,75% interest per annum.

“This judgment is a victory for South Africa’s founding values of accountability and the rule of law,” says Daniela Ellerbeck, an attorney and the FW de Klerk Foundation’s Constitutional Rights Programme Manager. “The Tribunal found that Easyway misrepresented its qualifications, for example, it engineered projects that never existed. Furthermore, the criteria used to award the tender to Easyway was unfair, because the Municipality awarded the tender to Easyway, despite another bidder scoring higher points, without providing lawful reasons. This violated the various laws, especially section 217 of the Constitution which requires that public procurement be fair, equitable, transparent, competitive and cost-effective.”

The FW de Klerk Foundation commends the Special Investigating Unit for its persistence in this matter. Continued enforcement of procurement laws, coupled with strong political will, is essential to restore integrity, fairness and public trust in local government.