Ekurhuleni Toilet Tenders Paid US$99m to Limpopo Firms
South Africa · POLITICS
From political associate to major contractor
Selby Manthata is a former Malema business associate who was charged alongside him in the On Point Engineering case and acquitted.
News24 describes Manthata as once close to Julius Malema. Malema leads the Economic Freedom Fighters, and Manthata was also close to former Limpopo premier Cassel Mathale.
News24 reported that two Limpopo companies have collected more than R1.6 billion from Ekurhuleni since 2016. That is about US$99 million.
The current contract cycle is worth about R1.8 billion and runs until 30 June 2028.
The On Point Engineering case
Manthata’s history with Malema stems from the Limpopo road tender scandals of the early 2010s, centred on On Point Engineering.
Both men were charged with corruption and money laundering in 2012.
The court record shows Oceanside Trading 777 CC paid R1 million to a conveyancer. That was about US$122,000 at the 2012 rate of 8.2 rand to the dollar.
It was part-payment for Farm Schuilkraal 632, for the benefit of the Ratanang Trust. Manthata was a signatory on the Oceanside account.
The court found the State proved nothing against Manthata.
He was acquitted in the Mokopane Regional Court on 26 March 2014, discharged at the close of the State’s case.
His wife Helen Moreroa and his brother were also acquitted.
The State appealed and lost. The Gauteng High Court in Pretoria dismissed the appeal on 22 January 2016, in S v Moreroa and Others, case A523/2015.
That court found irregularities tainted the tender process but that the State failed to prove its case.
Malema’s own case was struck off the roll in Polokwane on 4 August 2015.
The prosecuting authority declined to prosecute in November 2019.
A deadly audit and a murder charge
Mpho Mafole was Ekurhuleni’s Divisional Head for Forensic Audit, three months into the job.
He submitted a probity audit report on 26 June 2025 and was shot dead on 30 June 2025.
Eyewitness News reported the audit “could be” the reason for his killing.
A News24 journalist said: “We are not yet in a position to pronounce why he was killed.”
Thabani Ntshalintshali, 40, appeared in the Kempton Park Magistrate’s Court in July 2025 charged with Mafole’s murder.
He was on bail for another murder at the time.
A second suspect was reported at large.
The trial has been repeatedly delayed.
A cash cow with little oversight
A 2019 Daily Maverick and amaBhungane investigation characterised an earlier Ekurhuleni chemical toilet project as a black hole and cash cow.
It alleged that some companies had links to municipal officials and politicians, including then executive mayor Mzwandile Masina.
The investigation found serious lack of oversight, with companies making between R10 million and R42 million per year.
Ekurhuleni spent R1.9 billion on chemical toilets over three financial years from 2017 to 2019.
Theuwedi Trading Enterprise, with sole director Nakampe Aubrey Moliwa, took more than R100 million despite a registered address 400km away.
TTE and Moliwa tried to gag News24 and lost.
Judge Elmien du Plessis, Gauteng High Court Johannesburg, dismissed the application with costs on 2 May 2026.
On 29 June 2026 South Africa’s Press Council partly upheld a complaint by Phillip Rakgwale, Ekurhuleni’s Group Chief Audit Executive.
News24 was found to have breached press-code clauses for not disclosing it relied on a draft report.
News24 was ordered to apologise for singling Rakgwale out.
What to watch next
Opposition councillors in Ekurhuleni have called for the chemical toilet tender to be withdrawn or re-tendered.
The Democratic Alliance has demanded full publication of Mpho Mafole’s probity audit.
The contract runs until 30 June 2028, keeping the R1.8 billion framework in the spotlight.
Any criminal investigation into Mafole’s assassination could draw fresh attention to the tender process.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Selby Manthata and what is his connection to Julius Malema?
Selby Manthata is a former Malema business associate who was charged alongside him in the On Point Engineering case and acquitted. He is one of the largest beneficiaries of Ekurhuleni’s chemical toilet contracts.
How much money has Ekurhuleni paid to Manthata’s companies?
Two Limpopo companies linked to Manthata have collected more than R1.6 billion from Ekurhuleni since 2016. The current contract cycle is worth about R1.8 billion.
What happened to the auditor who investigated the toilet tender?
Mpho Mafole was shot dead on 30 June 2025, days after submitting a probity audit report. Thabani Ntshalintshali was charged with his murder in July 2025.
Sources
This article was produced by The Rio Times’ automated newsroom system. How we use AI · Report an error
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