Cipro official 'suspended'

Johannesburg - A senior official of the Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office (Cipro) has reportedly been suspended after providing information to the South African Police Service (SAPS), which is investigating a Cipro tender.

Cipro risk manager Rocco de Lorenzo has been suspended for cooperating with the SAPS, claims DA MP Andricus van der Westhuizen.

The SAPS and the Auditor-General are investigating allegations of tender fraud against Cipro's head of information, Dr Michael Twum-Darko.

The tender at issue relates to a new electronic content-management system, and was awarded to the unknown firm VALORit for R152.7m last year. Second on the shortlist was JSE-listed Faritec which tendered R60m.

Among other things, Twum-Darko had apparently provided a VALORit business partner with confidential tender documents that were not made available to other bidders.

When asked about De Lorenzo's possible suspension and the action taken against him, Cipro responded that the investigation was continuing and no comment could therefore be given at this stage.

It is understood that the suspension is related to Twum-Darko's personnel records, which show that he had not received the necessary security clearance from the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) that his appointment required. Twum-Darko was appointed to Cipro in January 2008.

Cipro, however, says that all the necessary documents have been sent to the NIA, and interviews have been held with Twum-Darko and his references.

Cipro was waiting for the NIA to respond, explained spokesperson Dr Elsabé Conradie.

Although Cipro previously indicated that the auditor-General had found no irregularities with the tender process, the final investigation in this regard was still under way.

The report is being completed and will be presented to Parliament within three weeks.

- Sake24.com

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