(4 minutes read)
· South Africa, it is reported, is trying to recover more than R400 million from German software firm, SAP, for two government contracts , it is alleged, were entered into unlawfully
· The move by the South African government, may not cast any financial liability for the US$ 162 billion SAP, but will be a loss of face for the German company known for its compliance record.
South Africa, it is reported, is trying to recover more than R400 million from German software firm, SAP, for two government contracts , it is alleged, were entered unlawfully. The move by the South African government, may not cast any financial liability for the US$ 162 billion SAP, but will be a loss of face for the German company known for its compliance record. SAP has a strong global presence and is one of the most respected brands. It may be noted that in 2018, SAP admitted to misconduct over deals with South African state firms like Eskom during former president Jacob Zuma’s tenure.
SAP said it was reviewing all its public sector deals in South Africa dating back to 2010 though the global IT company has not publicly admitted wrongdoing over the agreements. The controversy surrounding the deals erupted during 2015 and 2016. Those deals were related to the Department of Water and Sanitation. Since the agreements are in contravention with the government regulations, the investigators are looking at the prospects of declaring the document invalid.
The Special Investigating Unit (SIU), in papers filed in the court, asked the Special Tribunal, a court Ramaphosa established to fast-track recovery of misspent or stolen public money, to order SAP to reimburse roughly R128 million for the 2015 agreement and R285 million for the 2016 agreement along with interest.
In March 2018, SAP admitted to paying more than US$9 million to intermediary companies in relation to software deals with state power utility Eskom and state logistics firm Transnet. The SIU said it was also investigating SAP contracts at Eskom and Transnet.
