SA IT billionaire to hit newspaper group with R1 billion lawsuit: report
The Sunday Times reported that Gijima boss and IT billionaire Robert Gumede plans to sue Independent Newspapers and its owner Iqbal Survey for R1 billion after a report which said that he was investigated for corruption and fraud.
According to the Sunday Times report Gumede, a 47% shareholder in Gijima, sent a letter demanding damages for defamation for a front page article in the Sunday Independent titled “ANC funder probed”.
The Sunday Independent article stated that “A multi-million rand contract awarded to ANC benefactor Robert Gumede’s company is now the subject of a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) probe authorised by President Jacob Zuma”.
“Zuma signed the proclamation for the SIU to investigate the tender awarded by the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform to the billionaire’s JSE-listed IT firm, Gijima.”
“The SIU will investigate the R360 million contract that Gijima has failed to complete despite the department paying it millions of rand.”
In October 2013 Eileen Wilton, the interim CEO at Gijima, said that the troubled group will look to cut additional staff as part of an ongoing right-sizing initiative.
Gijima reported a R210.76 million loss for year ended June 2013, from a prior loss of R50.59 million in 2012.
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