Durban - Two Provincial Department of Health senior managers, who were in strategic positions, were suspended with immediate effect after the department found they were possibly involved in a number of corrupt activities regarding the issuing of contracts and the use of public money.
However, Health MEC Sibongiseni Dhlomo flatly refused to elaborate on the alleged corruption, committed by chief financial officer Mashaka Enos Ravhura and supply chain manager Andile Zondo.
The department’s audit risk manager, Vukani Dlamini, told the portfolio committee on health, meeting in Pietermaritzburg on Tuesday, that the department had incurred irregular expenditure of R1.4 billion during the 2012/13 financial year.
It is understood that the fraud accusations were made in a letter that came from within the department to health head Sibongile Zungu.
Dhlomo said he was confident that the department had made the right decision in suspending Ravhura and Zondo. When pressed to elaborate, Dhlomo said giving specific details would compromise the investigation to be conducted by an independent forensic investigator, who was yet to be appointed.
“There are many wrongs that have been going on in the department.
Right now they (Ravhura and Zondo) don’t know what we are investigating against them.
“They don’t know how much we know about their activities. They will only discover how much we know during the investigation,” he said.
He said their presence at work would interfere with the investigation and disciplinary action, which would be determined by the outcome of the investigation.
Dhlomo said Zungu had told him about the suspension of the two on Monday.
“It was not just the head of department’s decision, as I supported her when she took the decision. She informed me about it and, when she explained it, I said: ‘I support you. Go ahead.
“Without prejudicing the outcome of the investigation against the two officials, I would like to place it on record that the KZN government is serious about ensuring clean administration, which is not characterised by fraud and corruption,” said Dhlomo.
He praised Zungu on her success in the fight against corrupt officials, as almost all investigations so far had led to suspended officials being fired.
“The head of department takes care to ensure that by the time she suspends (someone) we are almost sure that suspension is going to give substance to what is going to be done.
“We don’t really suspend without valid points that would be very convincing to whoever is going to investigate,” he said.
The portfolio committee said it had been concerned about Ravhura’s absence on Tuesday when the department appeared before the committee to present its quarterly budget performance report.
ANC MPL Priscilla Mckay said Ravhura should have been present.
“Throughout the meeting we were asking ourselves questions about his absence. When Dhlomo came in he told us that he brought us bad news,” she said.
Mckay said for months the committee had been concerned about corruption in the department.
“All I can say is that there is a serious concern of corruption, but I don’t know the ins and outs of it.”
DA health spokesman Makhosazane Gumbi, who was not at the meeting when the suspension was announced, said she did not know what had happened.
The Mercury tried to contact Ravhura and Zondo for comment but was later informed that their government-issue cellphones had been confiscated following their suspension.
The Mercury