Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) has put its Chief Information Officer on hold amid accusations of misconduct concerning a multi-million rand tender.
This decision follows ACSA’s earlier denial of any issues with the tender process. However, a recent statement reveals that after conducting a further investigation, ACSA found preliminary evidence of misconduct related to the biometric and digital identity technology project. As a result, the Chief Information Officer has been placed on precautionary suspension to facilitate a thorough investigation and to keep the public informed of the findings.
The contract in question involves a biometric system awarded to the French company IDEMIA, which also included the local BEE firm InfoVerge. However, InfoVerge has sued both IDEMIA and ACSA after being excluded from the contract once IDEMIA, the primary contractor, took over. InfoVerge alleges that IDEMIA violated an agreement and leveraged InfoVerge’s BEE status to secure the R115 million contract, and has urged ACSA to suspend the contract until the legal dispute is resolved.
In response, IDEMIA acknowledged InfoVerge’s role as a local BEE partner but denied any misconduct in the procurement process. The legal dispute is ongoing in court.
