The East London Industrial Development Zone (Elidz) says it “welcomes” a probe into allegations of corruption and maladministration by the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) if the authorities “deem it worthwhile to put resources into these allegations once more”.
The new SIU investigation comes a year after a judgment was issued in a court case that lasted more than four years, where the same allegations were probed, and the judgment handed down “vindicated the Elidz from any wrongdoing”, the organisation states.
Prior to the last court case and, in 2015, a detailed investigation was launched where PwC was commissioned by the Eastern Cape provincial government’s Department of Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism to investigate the same allegations.
Following this, a report on the investigation found no transgression against the Elidz, the organisation states.
With the current investigation, the Elidz says it is hopeful the SIU will “finally end the allegations that have clouded the organisation for quite some time”.