Johannesburg – The stench of corruption in South Africa is a familiar one, permeating every level of government, from the smallest municipality to the highest echelons of power. While the country grapples with a seemingly endless stream of scandals, one particularly brazen method of hiding ill-gotten gains has emerged: the use of shady car dealerships to conceal luxury vehicles from prying eyes, including those of the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and the increasingly scrutinising lifestyle audits.
The practice, as detailed in a recent exposé by investigative journalist Jeff Wicks and former Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter, paints a grim picture of the lengths to which corrupt officials will go to maintain their lavish lifestyles while evading accountability.
De Ruyter, in his book "Truth to Power: My Three Years Inside Eskom," reveals how a network of corrupt cartels and Eskom employees used a specific car dealership in the coal belt to hide their luxury vehicles from the authorities.
"A car dealership in the coal belt specialised in housing fancy vehicles on behalf of their owners so that they didn’t appear in lifestyle audits," De Ruyter writes, exposing the audacious scheme.
The vehicles remained registered in the dealership's name, effectively shielding the true owners from detection.
"It would be available on demand should the actual owner wish to take his Lamborghini for a spin on the potholed roads of Mpumalanga," De Ruyter wryly observes, highlighting the absurdity of the situation.
Wicks, a seasoned investigative journalist, corroborates De Ruyter's findings, revealing that corrupt politicians and tenderpreneurs often prefer to pay for these luxury vehicles in cash, further complicating the trail.
"The following requirement is less than honourable car dealerships," Wicks says, "We have been told of bags of money being dropped off at night."
Millions in cash are handed over to the dealerships, with the cars delivered but ownership never transferred.
"That car will then sit in dealer stock for all its life. There is no paper link to the beneficial owner," Wicks explains, highlighting the meticulous efforts taken to conceal the illicit transactions.
These shady dealerships, often operating in the shadows, go even further, providing pre-signed temporary license plates to their illicit clients.
"When one expires, put on a new one, and then there are no fines," Wicks reveals, exposing the brazen disregard for the law by these corrupt individuals.
The corrupt officials and politicians are typically tipped off before the dreaded lifestyle auditors arrive at their homes, allowing them to quickly move their luxury vehicles out of sight.
"The dealership employees will collect them in the dead of night," Wicks explains, "That way, having to explain this low-slung sportscar in your garage is scotched."
This elaborate scheme allows corrupt officials to flaunt their ill-gotten gains, often using these luxury vehicles to impress and woo their associates, while simultaneously avoiding the scrutiny that comes with owning assets far beyond their legitimate income.
"This way, our elected leaders never have to explain how they own cars worth several times their annual salaries, and they get to flex for the ‘slay queens’ at rockets," Wicks says, highlighting the blatant disregard for ethical conduct and the culture of impunity that has taken root.
The practice extends beyond politicians, with tenderpreneurs who are not subject to lifestyle audits also utilising cash transactions and registering vehicles under unrelated businesses or proxies, further obscuring the true ownership.
The revelation of this intricate network of corrupt car dealerships exposes the audacity of those who believe they are above the law, and the sophisticated methods they employ to maintain their lavish lifestyles while evading accountability.
While the government has taken some steps to combat corruption, including the establishment of the Investigating Directorate and the implementation of lifestyle audits, these efforts appear to be falling short, as evidenced by the ongoing revelations of illicit activities.
