Two senior officials in the Department of Health have been placed on precautionary suspension following their arrest in connection with PPE tenders amounting to R43 million.
THE DEPARTMENT of Health has placed two senior officials on precautionary suspension following their arrest in connection with personal protective equipment (PPE) tenders amounting to R43 million.
The Hawks arrested the chief financial officer Daniel Gaborone and the former acting head of department Dr Dion Theys on Monday.
They were charged with fraud and contravention of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) and released on bail of R20 000.
The Northern Cape spent over R171 million on procuring Covid-19 items up until July 31 2020, where the Department of Health incurred the highest expenditure of R53 million.
Special Investigations Unit (SIU) spokesperson Kaizer Kganyaga indicated that the investigation into the awarding of PPE tenders in the Northern Cape was “still ongoing”.
Spokesperson for the Department of Health Lebogang Majaha on Friday stated that both officials were placed on precautionary suspension while investigations were being conducted.
“Other senior managers are being put into acting positions to ensure stability during this process.
“According to the law enforcement agency, the charges relate to allegations surrounding the procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE) to the value of R43 million without following the correct procurement procedures.
“The internal processes are covered by issues of employee/employer confidentiality agreements and the court procedures are under judicial consideration and therefore prohibited from public discussion elsewhere. Therefore the department will not comment further on this matter.”
He indicated that the MEC for the Department of Health Maruping Lekwene met with the executive management team in the department where he re-emphasised the need to urgently strengthen governance processes and internal controls.
“The MEC and acting head of department will meet next week with a joint sitting of the Northern Cape Legislature Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) and the Portfolio Committee on Health and Social Development. The purpose of the meeting is to brief the committee on these developments and explain the processes being implemented to ensure stability in the department in terms of its operations and its financial viability.”
Majaha added that the department had finalised the permanent appointment of managers in health facilities and districts to strengthen health care services, in districts across the Province.
“This will support management capacity building to expedite improved service delivery to communities.
“This achievement is in line with the budget speech commitments made by the MEC to strengthen finance and human resource management functions and fill critical vacancies in support services, re-align functions, and ensure suitability for the task at hand.”
