Slomoes Corporation has won its multimillion-Emalangeni legal battle against the Ministry of Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) after the Supreme Court dismissed an appeal brought by the ministry’s principal secretary.
The ruling concerns a disputed e-Cabinet contract worth over E15 million and a default judgment previously granted against the ministry.
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The judgment was delivered by Supreme Court Judge Nkululeko Hlophe, sitting with Judges Phesheya Dlamini and Stanley Maphalala.
In the ruling, Judge Hlophe stated that the matter was “strictly speaking, no longer one for rescission but for an appeal”, noting that counsel for the Applicant had previously indicated that the default judgment could not be avoided and had even asked for a one-month stay of execution.
The dispute stems from a written contract between the ICT ministry and Slomoes Corporation for the establishment of an e-Cabinet system intended for the safe-keeping of government files.
At the time of signing, the ministry was represented by then Principal Secretary Maxwell Masuku, while Slomoes Corporation was represented by its Managing Director, Lucky Dlamini.
The contract value was E15 million. Slomoes claimed that it fulfilled its contractual obligations but had received only E10.5 million, leaving a balance of E4.5 million unpaid.
With accumulated annual interest, the outstanding balance allegedly increased to E5.3 million.
In addition, Slomoes included a further claim of E1 million described as incidental charges.
Slomoes instituted legal action after allegedly submitting invoices for the outstanding sums without receiving payment.
After the ministry failed to enter a Notice of Intention to Defend within the required period, Slomoes applied for default judgment.
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The default judgment hearing was set for September 26, 2024. Although discrepancies were noted in the dates stamped on the set-down form, when the matter was called in court, the ICT ministry was represented by a legal representative identified as a Mr. Dlamini from the Attorney General’s Chambers.
The High Court later dismissed the ministry’s rescission application, concluding that the ministry’s explanation for the default was unsatisfactory and that the application was not made bona fide.
Proof
The PS appealed the High Court decision, arguing three main grounds:
– That the court erred in granting default judgment without proof of proper service
– That rescission should have been granted because the debt had allegedly not fallen due
– That the claim had prescribed under the Limitation of Legal Proceedings Against the Government Act of 1972
The Supreme Court found these arguments to lack merit.
Judge Hlophe stated that although concerns existed regarding the identity of persons served at both the Attorney General’s Chambers and the ICT ministry, the records showed that service had indeed been effected.
The court emphasised that once the ministry became aware of the default judgment application and was given an opportunity to file the necessary papers, it failed to comply with deadlines and court orders.
While the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal, it identified an issue in the High Court’s default judgment that it addressed on its own initiative.
This concerned the E1 million claimed as incidental charges.
The court found that the basis for this amount was not adequately explained in the particulars of claim or proven during the default judgment process.
Final Supreme Court Orders
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The appeal by the Principal Secretary is dismissed
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The E1 million incidental claim is set aside pending proof before the High Court
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The ICT Ministry must bear the costs of the appeal
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