A R31-million deal for mobile veterinary clinics has left the government with no completed buses more than a decade later, amid alleged procurement failures, missed safeguards and a stalled legal battle with the supplier. Despite warnings from auditors, millions were paid upfront without proper protections, leaving taxpayers with little to show for the project.

In July 2015, Centurion Bus Manufacturers (CBM) scored a R31-million contract to buy and convert seven buses into mobile veterinarian clinics for the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD).

Eleven years later, the CBM has delivered not one of the seven buses.

Approached for comment, lawyers acting for the company told amaBhungane: "Kindly take note that there is pending litigation between the CBM and [DALRRD]... The issues raised in your correspondence form part of the subject matter of the litigation and are therefore sub judice."

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Investigations by the Auditor-General of South Africa and by amaBhungane show the bid award process was suspicious, and that the execution of the contract, signed on 10 July 2015, was riddled with delays and irregularities.

Between September 2015 and April 2016, the department paid out about R26-million of the contract value, despite the fact that the CBM did not adhere to the contractual terms by providing proof of contract insurance.

According to information obtained by amaBhungane it appears that one senior official, Mooketsa Ramasodi, played a central role in the awarding of the contract - and had responsibility for implementing the remedial steps ordered by the Auditor-General in 2019.

Ramasodi was then...