Blackhead indicate who this person was, I asked. He ignored these
questions and instead gave me a general response about the need for
‘privacy’ and ‘confidentiality’. I was hoping Kodwa would be willing to
engage with me over the matter. After all, the acting ANC
spokesperson had taken a vocal stance against corruption, state capture
and strange payments from government contractors after revelations
about controversial state contractor Bosasa’s murky dealings surfaced
in early 2019.^2 Former Bosasa executive Angelo Agrizzi’s shocking
testimony at the Zondo Commission of Inquiry elicited this comment
from Kodwa: ‘We can’t have public servants who are in the pocket of
people who are a cartel, who are basically running the country like an
underworld, like a mafia.’^3
I asked Kodwa if he had ever received money from Blackhead
Consulting. I also asked him if the alleged payments might have been
connected to his former position as Mokonyane’s special adviser.
Kodwa ignored the question about the alleged payments. His only
response came in the form of a WhatsApp message: ‘My name is Zizi
Kodwa I was never advisor to Minister of Water Affairs Ms
Mokonyane, thanks.’ I pointed out that there were newspaper reports
about his role as Mokonyane’s adviser during her term as Gauteng
premier, but at this point Kodwa cut all communication with me. I even
hounded him for a response on Twitter, but he kept ignoring me. We
will have to keep wondering whether some of Blackhead Consulting’s
proceeds from the Free State asbestos audit or other government
contracts ended up in Kodwa’s account. If true, it begs the question of
why Kodwa received such payments.
Finally, a payment made by Blackhead in late 2015 also drew my
attention. On 11 August, the FSHS paid R 36. 5 million into the
nora
(Nora)
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