Image: Slain Emfuleni whistleblower Martha Mani Rantsofu fleet fraud investigation
BY: Saneliso Mlambo
The South African Police Service has officially confirmed that slain Emfuleni Local Municipality finance official, Martha Mani Rantsofu, was the whistleblower who exposed a controversial R16 million vehicle fleet tender fraud scheme just days before her assassination.
The revelation directly contradicts repeated denials by the embattled municipality, which previously rejected claims that Rantsofu’s execution-style murder was linked to her anti-corruption work.
The police update coincided with the brief appearance of former municipal fleet manager Lerato Mpholo in the Vanderbijlpark Magistrate’s Court. Mpholo was arrested over the weekend by the Gauteng Political Killings Task Team (PKTT). He faces heavy charges of theft, fraud, and corruption linked to the irregular acquisition of 18 municipal trucks and utility vehicles.
According to state investigators, the municipality made a full R16 million payment to an independent service provider. However, an internal forensic audit subsequently revealed that only seven of the 18 contracted vehicles were ever actually delivered, sparking a massive “ghost fleet” corruption scandal. Mpholo’s formal bail application has been officially postponed until next Monday.
The ongoing investigation is drawing widespread political scrutiny across Gauteng. Demanding the scope of the probe be widened to catch political masterminds, Democratic Alliance (DA) mayoral candidate Kingol Chabalala insisted that the prosecution must target the entire network.
“This must not become another case where only one person is held accountable while the rest of the network escapes justice,” Chabalala stated, noting that systemic municipal corruption continues to rob local residents of basic service delivery.
Authorities have confirmed that the PKTT is pursuing several leads, and further high profile arrests within Emfuleni’s supply chain management and finance units are expected imminently.