Fraud and Forgery Allegations Intensify as Questionable ML Nkosi Guarantees Surface Across Multiple Public Sector Projects

South Africa’s procurement system is facing a rapidly escalating scandal as allegations of forgery and fraudulent financial guarantees linked to ML Nkosi Electrical Contractors (Pty) Ltd and Marlvern Trading CC deepen across a widening range of public sector projects. Performance guarantees recently submitted by ML Nkosi appear to originate from Marlvern, a company formally barred from issuing any financial instruments.

This publication is in possession of at least four separate performance guarantees, all recently issued by ML Nkosi, raising the alarming possibility that forged or unlawfully reproduced financial instruments are circulating within multiple government procurement processes.

The silence from the companies involved only heightens concern. ML Nkosi’s directors Petros Pitzer and Portia Sebenzile Gwala, along with company representative Moeketsi Duiker, have not responded to multiple inquiries. Marlvern’s director Khuphukile Dube has equally failed to provide any explanation.

Civil society watchdog Right to Justice has described the emerging pattern as “strongly indicative of fraud and possible forgery,” warning that such conduct “poses an immediate threat to public oversight, financial integrity, and the protection of subcontractors and taxpayers.”

The Financial Sector Conduct Authority has acknowledged the inquiry and confirmed that it will be issuing the official status of Marlvern Trading CC, signalling that formal regulatory action may follow.

Further investigations by this publication into the conduct of both ML Nkosi and Marlvern Trading reveal a troubling pattern: questionable guarantees issued by ML Nkosi have surfaced across multiple unrelated public sector projects; the instruments appear to originate from Marlvern long after the company was prohibited from issuing any financial guarantees; the supporting documentation is inconsistent and in several cases contradictory; both entities have shown a complete lack of transparency; and all parties have repeatedly refused to respond to verification requests. Collectively, these findings point to a broader, systemic operational problem, not an isolated administrative issue, and raise serious questions about whether forged or unlawfully reproduced guarantees were deliberately used to secure public contracts. Based on investigations to date, the odds are increasingly stacking against ML Nkosi.

If the Financial Sector Conduct Authority confirms that Marlvern Trading continued issuing guarantees after being legally prohibited, experts say severe penalties must follow. These include full deregistration of Marlvern, personal liability sanctions against its director, and permanent disqualification from all public sector financial activity. Such conduct would constitute a direct and wilful violation of regulatory orders.

However, if Marlvern did not issue these latest guarantees and they were instead forged or unlawfully replicated, then the responsibility shifts entirely to ML Nkosi and its associates. In that case, a criminal case should be opened immediately, with potential charges including forgery, fraud, uttering, and misrepresentation to secure unlawful financial advantage.

Legal experts warn that the scale of the pattern uncovered could trigger not only criminal prosecution but also civil recovery actions and blacklisting from future tenders.

The emergence of these guarantees across multiple public sector entities highlights a deeper institutional weakness. Verification processes appear vulnerable, enabling fraudulent or prohibited financial instruments to pass through supply chain controls unnoticed. This systemic failure places public institutions, subcontractors, and ultimately taxpayers at unacceptable financial risk.

Industry observers argue that South Africa’s procurement ecosystem cannot continue relying on fragmented or manual verification processes. Stronger due diligence, including real time Financial Sector Conduct Authority compliance checks and direct verification with issuing institutions, must become mandatory across all spheres of government.

With the Financial Sector Conduct Authority has confirmed to The Star that it is investigating the matter. ML Nkosi had not responded to questions at the time of going to print.

Questions have been sent to all mentioned parties. This is a developing story.