JOHANNESBURG—Two individuals who were allegedly part of what’s been described as the largest, most destructive fraud in African history are facing extradition from the United States and United Kingdom, where they’ve been sheltering.
Nomalanga Moroadi Selina Cholota, 44, a member of South Africa’s major governing party, the African National Congress (ANC), has been charged with several crimes related to tender corruption estimated at R255 million ($14.2 million) allegedly committed in Free State province in 2014.
Ms. Cholota, personal assistant to the former ANC second-in-command Ace Magashule, left South Africa in late 2021 for Washington, to study at Bay Atlantic University (BAU).
An official at BAU, not authorized to speak with the media, told The Epoch Times, “Although Ms. Cholota toured our campus at one stage, we have no record of her enrolling here.”
Michael Lomas, 75, a dual British-South African citizen, is wanted in South Africa to face charges of fraud, corruption, and money laundering amounting to R1.4 billion ($78 million) committed at the country’s national electricity corporation, Eskom between 2014 and 2017.
Energy experts blame looting at the company for the near-collapse of the country’s power grid, which results in regular and lengthy blackouts in Africa’s most industrialized economy.
Ms. Cholota and Mr. Lomas are allegedly connected to former South African president and ANC leader Jacob Zuma’s “State Capture” scheme.
Legal experts describe the scheme as perhaps the largest and most elaborate case of corruption ever perpetrated in Africa, a continent well-known for graft.
Mr. Zuma denies wrongdoing, blaming current President Cyril Ramaphosa, who ousted him as ANC leader in late 2017, and “white capitalists,” for conspiring “falsely” against him.
Economists blame “State Capture” in large part for the current poor state of services and infrastructure in South Africa, evident in decay at ports, roads, railways, and electricity and water breakdowns, all eroding the economy.
The ANC recently fell to its worst-ever election result, getting just 40 percent of the vote and losing the absolute majority in Parliament it has held since the fall of apartheid in 1994.
This has forced it to form a coalition government, with its main partner being the business-friendly, centrist Democratic Alliance (DA).
Political analysts say voters punished the ANC for years of state corruption and economic mismanagement.
Mr. Ramaphosa and the DA, have pledged to rid the government of “criminal elements.”
South Africa’s National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) applied for Ms. Cholota’s extradition in June 2022, claiming she was part of a cabal of ANC officials and businessmen who stole millions of dollars from the Free State government.
The NPA said Ms. Cholota, on the orders of Mr. Magashule, helped facilitate the award of a tender to a private firm to remove toxic asbestos from homes in the province.
However, said the NPA, the asbestos was never removed, the syndicate pocketed the money from the tender, and thousands of citizens continue to live in houses containing the material that can cause potentially fatal respiratory diseases.
Ms. Cholota was arrested on April 12 after police tracked her to a home in Maryland, near Washington, and was remanded into custody.
In her judgment, Judge Aslan wrote: “Cholota is alleged to have knowingly engaged in this [asbestos removal] scheme by using her government position to facilitate corrupt financial transactions.
“South Africa’s extradition request is accompanied by indictments, sworn statements and affidavits, a forensic audit, emails, and many other documents, all of which amply support a finding of probable cause to believe both that Cholota is the individual named in the pending South African indictment and that she committed the charged offenses.”
Judge Aslan further found that “the evidence before this court is sufficient to justify Cholota’s commitment for trial had the offenses with which she is charged been committed in the United States.
“Cholota is … extraditable and [the ruling is] that she be committed to the custody of the United States Marshal until the Secretary of State [Antony Blinken] renders a decision on extradition.”
Ms. Cholota’s lawyer, Piet Tibane, told The Epoch Times his client will “use all legal means possible in both the United States and South Africa to challenge any application to extradite her.”
South Africans first heard of the former personal assistant when she testified about the asbestos tender scandal at the State Capture Commission of Inquiry in December 2019.
Ms. Cholota acknowledged her boss, Mr. Magashule, an ANC veteran, had frequently instructed her to request “financial favors” from wealthy businesspeople linked to the party.
She identified Ignatius “Igo” Mpambani as one such businessman, whose firm won a tender after making an unsolicited bid to the housing department to audit and replace asbestos roofs in the Free State.
The Commission of Inquiry later concluded there was “strong evidence” that Mr. Mpambani channeled money from the contract to Mr. Magashule’s accounts.
The killing remains unsolved.
Mr. Magashule was arrested in connection with the asbestos housing fraud in November 2020. He was released on bail and is awaiting trial on charges of corruption, fraud, and money laundering.
He denies the charges.
Mr. Lomas was arrested on April 15, 2021, in London and granted bail of 100,000 pounds ($127,000).
The former Eskom executive is fighting his extradition from the United Kingdom on health grounds.
Mr. Lomas has a degenerative spinal condition and is confined to a wheelchair.
In December 2021, South African prosecutors explained to UK authorities that Mr. Lomas was wanted in South Africa “to stand trial for alleged fraud and corruption for a R745 million payment made by the power utility to Tubular Construction Project.
“The company was involved in the construction of Kusile Power Station, in which millions of rands were allegedly paid to Eskom officials in illegal gratuities for the awarding of lucrative contracts. This exposed Eskom to at least R1.4 billion in costs.”
“Currently Mr. Lomas requires residential care in order to assist with his activities of daily living such as dressing and washing,” said the doctor’s report.
“He is seen on a weekly basis by a physiotherapist who has recommended that he does not maintain the same position for longer than 45 minutes, except when lying in bed.”
Mr. Mitchell said Mr. Lomas would not be able to move every 45 minutes on a commercial flight and if there was an emergency, he would not be able to assume the brace position. He would also be unable to get to the toilet.
The physician added: “In respect of his mental health Mr. Lomas told me that if extradited he would take his own life and knew how he would do so. Given this, I would recommend that an urgent psychiatric review be appropriate.”
The judge ruled that a medical doctor, as discussed with the South African Police Service, would accompany Mr. Lomas on the flight to South Africa should he be extradited.
“The escorting clinician will be on hand on the flight, to assist with getting [him] into and out of the narrow wheelchair, to assist with getting onto and off the toilet, and to assist with washing,” the judgment said.
It found that the issue of Mr. Lomas not being able to assume the brace position given his mobility issues was irrelevant.
“There is no evidence that a brace position is a prerequisite for all who fly,” the judgment said.
“The premise of an emergency landing is not on substantial grounds a real risk.”
Advocate Mthunzi Mhaga, spokesperson for the National Directorate of Public Prosecutions (NDPP), told The Epoch Times South Africa’s justice authorities are committed to “jailing” all who benefitted from State Capture, “wherever they are.”
He said: “The days of us being seen as a gangster state are over. We are cooperating with colleagues across the world to flush these people out. They must pay for almost destroying our democracy.”
Two of the NDPP’s primary targets are Atul and Rajesh Gupta, who were allegedly Mr. Zuma’s chief co-conspirators in the State Capture fraud.
According to South Africa’s Corruption Watch group, the Gupta family immigrated to South Africa from northern India in 1993.
“Beginning as computer retailers, the Guptas managed to build a sprawling business empire operating in sectors ranging from mining and technology to media, defense, and energy production,” it said.
“During the presidency of Jacob Zuma from 2009 to 2018, they were alleged to have used bribes to secure access to lucrative state contracts and wield significant influence over South African politics.
According to later investigations, the Guptas were even able to manipulate Zuma’s ministerial appointments in their own interest.”
Atul and Rajesh Gupta fled South Africa in 2018, shortly after Mr. Zuma fell from power, and were arrested in Dubai in 2023 on an Interpol Red Notice issued for global fugitives.
United Arab Emirates (UAE) authorities claim the Guptas are in custody “pending investigation into their activities.”
But Mr. Mhaga said: “We don’t know where the Guptas are at the moment as the UAE is proving to be less than cooperative.”
In April, the UAE dismissed South Africa’s request to extradite the brothers.
Vanuatu authorities said Atul and Rajesh Gupta became citizens under the country’s Economic Citizenship Programme in 2019 after they declared they were innocent of all criminal charges against them in South Africa.
