Ndebele still ambassador to Australia

26 May 2016

Cape Town - Sbu Ndebele is still South Africa's ambassador to Australia, the commission there said on Thursday after a claim in court papers that he had been recalled.

"The department wishes to place it on record that High Commissioner Ndebele remains in his position and that he is performing his official duties as Head of Mission in the Australian capital, Canberra," said Tebogo Bosoga, the third secretary: political, at South Africa's High Commission in Canberra.

Bosoga was responding to an inquiry from News24.

According to a submission in papers filed at the Constitutional Court, Ndebele had been recalled after being indicted in a dispute between the Department of Transport, and Tasima, a company contracted to run the eNatis licencing system.

The Constitutional Court had been asked to hear a case relating to a dispute over whether the contract to Tasima should have been extended.

Ndebele appeared on charges of corruption in the Durban Commercial Crimes Court in December for allegedly getting R10m for the contract to be extended and for work related to the 2010 Soccer World Cup.

National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Luvuyo Mfaku said Ndebele had been released on bail, with no conditions attached.

Investigations continued and the case would be heard again on July 20 at the Pretoria Commercial Crimes Court.

Ndebele was appointed High Commissioner to Australia in May 2015. He was previously a minister of transport and correctional services respectively.

This article first appeared on News24, see here.