The Supreme Court of Appeal has declared a controversial contract to build a new multibillion-rand diplomatic headquarters for SA's diplomats in New York unlawful some seven years after it was reached.
The court ruled that the award of a tender by the Department of International Relations and Cooperation to a joint venture of the Simeka Group and Regiments Capital in May 2016 was invalid. The ambitious project - which included buying land in Manhattan and then designing and building a modern office and residential complex - was expected to cost around $159 million in total . No money for you
What scuppered the plan was a refusal by National Treasury to release any more funds due to the role played by Regiments Capital, an entityWhile Regiments opted to quit the project, Treasury had seen enough and refused to proceed with just the Simeka Group. In late 2018, Dirco instituted an application to have its own tender declared invalid so that it could get its deposit back., with the North Gauteng High Court in the Pretoria ruling in that it took too long to institute its court action. Newsletter