The Lemo Fest is expected to take place from 1 to 15 October. On the last day of the festival, there will be a Macufe Cup. OFM News sent an inquiry to the departmental spokesperson, Tankiso Zola, to establish if the department will be partnering with the Kenworth Group.

In reply, he said they [the department] are not associated with the Lemo Fest, therefore he cannot comment on the questions that include the festival. Kenworth Group’s decision to host the Lemo Fest at their mall based in Bloemfontein, Lemo Mall, comes during a time when the department has not shared any communication about a tender invitation sent out to those who desire to offer their services as implementation agents for Macufe.

Questions were also posed about whether the tender for Macufe has been advertised, if not when it will be advertised. If it has been advertised, when will a service provider be appointed? In reply, Zola said official communication will follow in due course regarding Macufe. 

Macufe is a flagship of the department, which has been in existence since 1997. However, those involved in the festival have been accused of milking the department. OFM News has scheduled an interview with Kenworth Group’s founder and CEO, Freddy Kenny, to gain more insight into the planning of Lemo Fest.

The spokesperson to premier Mxolisi Dukwana, Sello Dithebe.

At the launch of the festival, the founder and CEO of C-Squared, Ben Moseme, was seen giving a presentation on the planning points of the festival. On the official poster of Lemo Fest, C-Squared’s logo is visible, which raises the question if the company is involved in the festival. Their role in Lemo Fest will become clear once an interview with Kenny has been concluded. 

Also present at the launch was the acting executive mayor of Mangaung, Gregory Nthatisi, and the spokesperson to Premier Mxolisi Dukwana, Sello Dithebe.

The acting executive mayor of Mangaung, Gregory Nthatisi. 

Moseme in 2022 decided to announce that he will be hosting a chain of events, which were set to take place during the same time Macufe happens. His decision came while there was uncertainty that there will be Macufe, as the department had not advertised the tender. His company was at a later stage appointed to be the service provider for Macufe.

Mosa Likobo, founder and CEO of DS Consortium, who was also in the running to be appointed as a service provider for Macufe, launched an urgent bid to obtain a court order against the department. This was because he believed the department’s decision was biased, therefore he wanted it to be declared unlawful and set aside. During open court, it was revealed that C-Squared had sent a letter to the department, proposing the company and C-Squared work together.   

The court at a later stage ruled the department’s decision to appoint C-Squared as a service provider unlawful and therefore set it aside. This judgment has been appealed several times by the department and judgment on the latest appeal has not been delivered.

The letter outlined that C-Squared has been with Macufe for 12 years.

“C-Squared’s concerns about the tender invitation include that the timing of the call for bids, at such a late stage, is severely unfortunate as it seems that some of the events that the department intends to host and hold during the festival period, had already been catered for by C-Squared for the same period, which may lead to confusion and/or a duplication of events,” read the letter.

OFM News