The Special Investigating Unit has frozen R8.4 million worth of luxury properties in connection with an alleged fraudulent Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) contract worth R26.96 million awarded by the Northern Cape Department of Health during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The SIU secured an interim preservation order from the Special Tribunal on 3 October 2025, prohibiting the sale, transfer, or disposal of three properties: one in Kimberley and two in the affluent Johannesburg suburbs of Bryanston and Beverley. The order represents the state’s opening move to recover public funds allegedly diverted through a manipulated procurement process.
At the center of the investigation is a contract awarded to Macronym 37 (Pty) Ltd in June 2020. The SIU’s findings suggest a premeditated scheme involving inflated quantities, backdated documents, and collusion between company officials and government employees.
According to the SIU investigation, the contract was awarded without following lawful procurement procedures. Investigators discovered that a deviation memo dated 24 March 2020, used to bypass standard Treasury rules, was backdated to create an impression of legitimacy. The memo was drafted on 11 March 2020, before the specific Treasury instruction it claimed to reference was even published.
The contract was awarded by the department’s then Chief Financial Officer, Daniel Gaborone, and approved by the Acting Head of Department, Dr. Dion Theys.
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The investigation also revealed massive inflation of PPE quantities. The department’s approved submission from 23 March 2020 had requested only 30,000 N95 masks and made no mention of coveralls. However, the contract awarded to Macronym was for 50,000 coveralls, 250,000 surgical masks, and 250,000 N95 masks, resulting in an over-expenditure of more than R8 million on N95 masks alone.
Forensic analysis revealed that invoices from a sub-contractor, Masedi Star, were created in 2022 – two years after the alleged deliveries – in what investigators believe was a deliberate attempt to mislead the SIU investigation. One invoice claimed a payment of R13.248 million was due, yet bank records show Masedi Star received only R2 million from Macronym.
The SIU uncovered evidence of direct WhatsApp communication between Macronym’s director, Christopher Somandla Sibisi, a well-known Kimberley businessman, and CFO Gaborone during the procurement process. At the time of the contract award, Macronym 37 was not tax-compliant and was not registered on the Central Supplier Database as a medical supplier, disqualifying it from receiving such a contract.
Delivery verification proved nearly impossible due to the collapse of inventory control at the department’s storage facility. A shortfall of 44,438 coveralls could not be accounted for, and the Auditor-General later flagged an inability to verify the deliveries.
The SIU’s financial trace of the R26.96 million payment revealed rapid diversion for personal enrichment. Almost immediately after the funds landed in Macronym 37’s bank account, investigators documented a pattern of expenditure unrelated to delivering protective equipment.
The analysis showed R3.86 million was used to acquire real estate, while R4.2 million was transferred to Aphiwokuhle Holdings, another company linked to the central figures. More than R8.2 million was transferred to other members of the Sibisi family and their associated entities. Additionally, R1.12 million was withdrawn in cash, and public funds allegedly paid for a jacuzzi, high-end sound system, motor vehicles, and school fees.
The Special Tribunal’s preservation order imposes strict restrictions on three properties acquired following the PPE payment. The properties are identified as Township ERF 11822 in Kimberley, ERF 281 in Beverley Extension 22, and ERF 3283 in Bryanston Extension 7.
The respondents are explicitly prohibited from selling, disposing, leasing, encumbering, transferring, donating, or dealing in any manner with these properties. The Registrar of Deeds has been directed to place caveats on the title deeds, serving as public notice of the legal restriction and preventing any transactions involving the properties.
The interim order will remain in place pending the final determination of the SIU’s review application to have the original R27 million contract declared unlawful and set aside.
While R8.4 million in assets has been secured, the SIU’s civil proceedings to recover the full R27 million continue. The possibility of future criminal prosecutions against the implicated officials and company directors remains under consideration.
