The state’s case against Pinnacle: report

·6 Jul 2014

The Hawks say that they have a strong case against Pinnacle executive director Takalani Tshivhase, who stands accused of bribing a senior SAPS official.

According to a report by City Press detailing the state’s case against Tshivhase, a Hawks spokesperson said that the group has clear evidence against the executive.

The SAPS issued a statement on 5 March saying that Tshivhase was arrested at his office in Johannesburg.

He allegedly offered a lieutenant general in the technology management environment of the SAPS R5 million to secure a multimillion rand tender for Pinnacle.

The tender reportedly involved a contract to offload 3,000 ID terminals with the SAPS.

Previously, acting as a subcontractor for Unisys, Pinnacle sold 1,000 field terminals to the SAPS, which allegedly encountered connectivity and software problems.

The SAPS also alleges that it was overcharged tens of thousands of rands per unit, having been charged over R54,000 for products found on the market for just over R26,000

Tshivhase appeared in court on Wednesday, 2 July 2014, where the matter was postponed to 9 September 2014, at the request of the prosecution, in order to consider representations that had been made by Tshivhase.

In the wake of the scandal, Pinnacle’s stock price has plummeted, having lost over 31.5% of its value since the arrest was announced, making a slight recovery from the lowest point of R10.78 on 26 March.

Pinnacle directors did not disclose Tshivhase’s arrest to shareholders until the SAPS’s media release on the matter, making the group subject to an investigation by the Financial Services Board.