Johannesburg – President Cyril Ramaphosa has taken an unprecedented step and asked all his ministers to compile a list of Covid-19 tenders and submit it to him so that he can release the information publicly.
He wants that to be done by the end of this week. This comes as his own spokesperson, Khusela Diko, among many ANC leaders, is on special leave after her husband, Inkosi Thandisizwe Diko, was allegedly caught dipping his hands into the Covid-19 cookie jar.
In a leaked letter which was written on Wednesday and sent to all the ministers, Ramaphosa pleaded for their urgent cooperation, saying he wanted to make the list public.
He took the decision immediately after a cabinet meeting and said the list of the tenders should be sent to a six-cabinet committee chaired by Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola.
President @CyrilRamaphosa has appointed a committee to deal with alleged corruption in the procurement of resources for the purposes of responding to the covid19 pandemic. Minister, Ronald Lamola has been appointed as the chairperson of that committee.#sabcnews pic.twitter.com/cjAUnTNlNZ
— Natasha Nokuthula Phiri (@NatashaN_Phiri) August 6, 2020
The other five members of the committee are Minister in the Presidency Jackson Mthembu, Finance Minister Tito Mboweni, Police Minister Bheki Cele, Public Service and Administration Minister Senzo Mchunu and Minister for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma.
“In this regard, I request your full cooperation in providing the information related to names of companies and amounts of tenders and contracts that have been awarded in your respective departments (and entities) during the period of the Covid-19 and national state of disaster.
“These lists must be provided to the above committee as a matter of urgency this week. The committee will prepare a comprehensive report and I intend to release this information publicly,” Ramaphosa said in the letter.
Ramaphosa's spokesperson, Tyrone Seale, confirmed the establishment of the committee and said a public statement has already been issued about it.
Political Bureau