The Gauteng Department of e-Government, punted heavily by Premier Panyaza Lesufi, awarded a contract for an e-panic button to a seemingly non-existent company registered at a building owned by the department's former chief information officer (CIO).
Onele Innovation was awarded the R1-million contract. It has no online footprint, and the cellphone numbers for its director, 29-year-old Onele Malindi, do not work. There is no trace of Malindi online, except for a sparse Facebook page.
News24 went to the address where Onele Innovation claimed to be registered with the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission and found a shabby student residence.