The scams, according to our information, impress and purport to use their acumen and skill, to help ``clinch contracts’’, allegedly with the department of Public Works.
Unsuspecting victims are conned into paying between R6 000 and R100 000 in administration fees to members of the scam to facilitate the ``deal’’ on their behalf.

One such victim was allegedly promised a contract to the value of R61million for a non- existent school project in Coligny outside Lichtenburg.

The latest victim- a motor vehicle service centre- was made to believe to have been awarded a whopping R36million “contract” by the department.
The manufactured contract had to do with the “service and repair” of government vehicles in the Klerksdorp/Potchefstroom areas.

“Tenders for such contracts never ever existed. In fact the servicing of government fleet vehicles does not even form part of our mandate,” said a spokesman, Matshube Mfoloe.

“ The most worrying factor here is, the culprits also masquerade as employees of the department. They use fake or falsified letter heads bearing our departmental logo including the code of arms plus a rubber stamp in the correspondence to their victims,” he said.
It has also been brought to our attention that, one of the culprits in the latest incident, has a title of Chief Director: Projects.
This position does not exist in our department.

Our official letter heads as well as the text of the rubber stamps we use differed significantly from what the scams are using.

“All contracts in government, big or small, must adhere and subscribe to certain requirements as stipulated by law. Government contracts for amounts of R500 000 and more, are advertised in the mainstream media,’’ Mfoloe said.

He said the process to award the contract is transparent and no one is expected to influence the awarding process to favour a particular person or company.