Visible accountability on driving licence contract needed

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (OUTA) welcomes the court order granted on 6 January 2026, which sets aside the awarding of the driving licence card machine tender to Idemia, awarded in September 2024.

The contract was managed and awarded by the Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA), a Department of Transport entity with the sole responsibility of producing driving licence cards.

OUTA raised serious concerns with the Minister of Transport at the time of the award, pointing to material irregularities and evidence suggesting potential fraud in the bid evaluation and adjudication processes. These concerns were supported by documentation and analysis shared by OUTA shortly after the tender decision was announced. See here.

To her credit, the Minister responded by requesting the Office of the Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) to engage with OUTA and other stakeholders to assess whether the identified irregularities were sufficient to justify the cancellation of the tender. On 13 December 2024, the AGSA’s report was issued with findings aligned with OUTA’s concerns and formally recommended that the tender be cancelled.

Following this, the Minister filed papers with the court in July 2025 seeking an order to overturn the tender. While OUTA supports the eventual outcome, we remain deeply concerned about the inordinate delay in concluding this process, with the court papers filed nearly seven months after the AGSA’s report, and the court order only finalised some six months later. Such delays perpetuate uncertainty, undermine confidence in procurement reform and prolong the risk exposure to the state.

Of equal concern is the apparent absence of accountability. We note that the Director-General of Transport at the time the contract was signed, Advocate James Mlawu, resigned on 11 December 2024 – two days before the AGSA’s report was issued – with effect from 28 February 2024, although it is unclear if this was connected to the Idemia mess. Other than that, there has been no known consequence management against officials within the Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA) or the Department of Transport who were responsible for the irregular bid processes uncovered.

Without accountability, the risk of repeat misconduct remains unacceptably high and the lack of trust in government continues to grow.

The tender to produce the new driving licence card machine has, over the past five years, become an administrative and governance nightmare, marked by repeated cancellations, re-tendering and procedural resets. This pattern flies in the face of National Treasury procurement rules and guidelines and has consistently raised red flags of political interference and “tenderpreneurship” opportunities at the expense of service delivery and public trust.

OUTA also notes and welcomes the Minister’s stated intention to extend the validity period of driving licences from five to eight years. However, this announcement has been in the public domain for several months, and we struggle to understand why such a straightforward, low-risk reform decision is taking so long to implement. The benefits are clear: reduced administrative pressure on the DLCA, cost savings for the state and its people and improved convenience for motorists. The consequences of this decision can only be positive for both society and government.

OUTA will continue to monitor developments closely and will persist in calling for decisive reform, transparent procurement, and real accountability within the Department of Transport.

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