Suspended Independent Development Trust (IDT) CEO Tebogo Malaka and the organisation’s spokesperson Phasha Makgolane have been implicated in a recorded bribery attempt involving a Daily Maverick journalist.
Caught in the act: What the footage reveals
According to the publication, the two officials offered R60,000 in cash to suppress an investigation into Malaka’s alleged misconduct at the IDT.
The footage, recorded during a meeting on Sunday, 3 August 2025, at a wine farm restaurant near Stellenbosch, shows Makgolane placing a Dior shopping bag on the table containing stacks of R200 notes.
The offer was made in exchange for the journalist’s silence on a Daily Maverick investigation linking Malaka to an irregular contract and a luxury property deal.
After photographing the cash, the journalist refused the bribe and walked away, leaving the money on the table. Malaka and Makgolane quickly collected the cash and exited the restaurant.
A deeper plot: Previous interactions and promises of tender kickbacks
This wasn’t the first time the journalist had contact with IDT’s officials. In early June, Makgolane initiated a meeting in which he offered future cash payments of R100,000 and access to lucrative IDT tenders if the journalist agreed to stop publishing negative stories.
This meeting was not recorded, but Makgolane later sent documents for an upcoming tender via WhatsApp — confirming intent.
According to Daily Maverick, this sting operation was planned with legal support and surveillance to expose the alleged misconduct.
Minister Dean Macpherson responds
Reacting to the bribery allegations, Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Dean Macpherson announced that he would address the matter on Thursday, 7 August 2025, at the Cape Town Central Police Station.
Macpherson, who has recently faced public scrutiny over his reforms at the IDT, said this exposé sheds light on a coordinated effort to undermine the state entity’s integrity.
“The CEO and spokesperson were recorded attempting to bribe a journalist to kill an investigation,” Macpherson’s office stated, indicating further investigations may follow.
The Independent Development Trust is a government agency responsible for building schools, clinics, and other public facilities across South Africa.
It manages over R4 billion annually in public funds for social infrastructure. Malaka had already been suspended over a separate R836 million scandal related to oxygen plant contracts.
The latest bribery attempt is linked to additional investigations into her private property dealings and her ties to an IDT contractor.