Cape Town – Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia de Lille told Parliament on Tuesdayt the disciplinary process against director-general Sam Vukela will start soon and be chaired by a senior advocate.
De Lille placed Vukela under precautionary suspension in connection with the irregular awarding of state funeral contracts after President Cyril Ramaphosa delegated his powers to take action against the official.
Briefing the joint meeting of the parliamentary committees, the minister said Vukela’s suspension would remain in place until the disciplinary process had been finalised and allegations against him were tested.
She said in terms of the senior management handbook the disciplinary process should start within 60 days delivery of a letter to him.
"I sought legal advice and assistance to start the process as directed in minutes of the president. An internal disciplinary process that will be chaired by a senior advocate will be convened in due course," De Lille told the MPs.
"In order to protect the integrity of the process and rights of the director-general Advocate Sam Vukela in terms of the Labour Relations Act, I prefer no comment will be made until the process has been concluded to protect the rights of the director-general," she added.
Vukela was placed on precautionary suspension with effect from July 29 pending the finalisation of the disciplinary process instituted against him.
De Lille said this came after she received a letter from Ramaphosa on March 17 to inform her of his decision to delegate his powers to the minister to initiate disciplinary process against Vukela.
"The Office of the State Law Adviser appointed a legal firm Cheadle Thompson & Haysom Inc to assist with the matter," she said.
The move was a sequel to two investigative reports she received into the state funerals.
These were the reports by PriceWaterhouseCoopers which investigated allegations of irregularities related to the provision of moveable infrastructure for official funerals as well as the report by the Public Service Commission into allegations of irregular appointments within the senior management service of the department.
The PWC had probed allegations involving the funerals of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and former minister Zola Skweyiya and ambassador Billy Masethla.
The funerals apparently cost R76m and the probe had found negligence on the part of the department in overseeing the funerals.
Political Bureau