Armscor, whose chief executive is at the centre of a South African newspaper expose regarding fraud and sexual favours, maintains it upholds the “highest ethical standards”.
Responding to a defenceWeb inquiry on the City Press report headlined “Armscor CEO under attack”, the State-owned defence and security acquisition company that reports to Defence and Military Veterans Minister Thandi Modise, said “Armscor leadership views matters raised in the article with great concern”.
Elaborating, Senior Manager: Corporate Communication Liziwe Nkonyana said allegations made by the Johannesburg Sunday newspaper are “not supported by information in our [Armscor] records”.
Broadly, the City Press report has it Armscor Chief Executive Solomzi Mbada is embroiled in a dispute with the Armscor board and reportedly refused to meet chair Phillip Dexter. This after a board meeting resolved to suspend Mbada on allegations of irregularities surrounding his contract and complaints he used his influence to benefit Armscor employees he allegedly had personal relationships with. Mbada is also accused of having personal relationships with junior staff members and fathering children with three Armscor employees, who he promoted. He denies all the allegations.
The CEO is reportedly accused by executives and board members of involvement in irregularities related to his five-year employment contract. Mbada is allegedly the only permanently employed chief executive of a state-owned company (SOC).
As to what will happen now, Nkonyana said: “We [Armscor] are confident in the reliability of our internal processes and records” and is further “assuring” all stakeholders “Armscor leadership is taking the necessary measures to resolve this matter”.
She requested stakeholders “to continue with business as usual, while the matter is being dealt with” adding an update will be provided in due course.
