Mohale FM COMPANIES linked to Prime Minister Sam Matekane and Minister of Local Government, Chieftainship, Home Affairs and Police, Lebona Lephema, were once investigated by police over an alleged Road Fund tollgate fraud scheme
However, they later settled all their issues with the Fund including all outstanding amounts and no criminal charges were pursued against them.
Police investigation documents leaked recently show that Mr Matekane’s MGC Properties and Mr Lephema’s Executive Transport were among 13 companies probed in 2022 for allegedly making bogus tollgate payments at the Maseru and Caledonspoort border posts. The documents indicate that the companies allegedly colluded with Road Fund employees to defraud the parastatal between 2020 and 2022 through fraudulent reloading of toll gate cards without remitting funds.
The Road Fund is said to have lost more than M4 million during the period under review.Lephema Executive Transport allegedly owed M394 008, while MGC Properties owed M10 268. Although the amounts linked to the two companies appear relatively small, police documents do not indicate how long the alleged scheme may have gone undetected before being uncovered
Other companies implicated in the alleged fraud include Hippo Transport, Slitz Transport, Top Transport, Circuit Breaker Industries, ISM Transport, Notz Freight Logistics, Takaso Thabiso, Ntsapi Transport, Moiketsi Mathe, Phofson & Ramson, and Startech Enterprise.
It appears that Hippo Transport, owned by Revolution for Prosperity (RFP) legislator for Peka constituency Mohopoli Monokoane, is the only company that has been taken to court by the Road Fund.
When asked why the Road Fund had pursued legal action against Mr Monokoane but not against the companies linked to Messrs Lephema and Matekane, Road Fund Head of Corporate Communications Phumla Moleko said the two had settled their debts. She added that Road Fund employees suspected of receiving bribes to facilitate the alleged fraud had been dismissed.
