Mpumalanga recovers over 80% of funds in dodgy laptop tender deal

By Levy Masiteng 

The Mpumalanga provincial government has recovered about 80% of the money it is claiming from a supplier linked to a controversial R2 million laptop procurement by the provincial education department, the Office of the Premier said.

The premier’s office said the province had recovered R685,712.70 of the R855,712.70 it had claimed from the service provider, with the outstanding R170,000 expected to be paid by the end of January 2026.

The matter relates to the Mpumalanga Department of Education’s purchase of 22 laptops and a printer in 2024, which drew public scrutiny after the per-laptop price was disclosed in early 2025.

Premier Mandla Ndlovu ordered a forensic investigation after being alerted by a whistleblower, and on May 5, 2025 his office published a report concluding that the procurement process was “flawed” and involved “misrepresentation and possible fraud”, including allegations that the supplier delivered laptops of lower quality than