Pretoria – The Hawks should institute an urgent investigation into the full extent of the corruption scandals that have occurred under Gauteng Premier David Makhura’s watch.
This is according to Gauteng MPL and DA leader in Gauteng Solly Msimanga who was speaking outside the Hawks offices in Silverton following submitting a letter for the authority to probe corruption in the province.
He said since the inception of the national lockdown as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic Gauteng has been plagued with corruption scandals.
“Following the recent revelations by the former Gauteng Health Department chief financial officer, Kabelo Lehloenya that Makhura gave her the names of the companies to appoint to supply and deliver PPEs in the province there is an urgent need for action to be taken against Premier Makhura.”
He said some of the corruption scandals involved R2,2 billion being spent by the Gauteng Department of Health on fishy PPE suppliers in three months last year.
“The department paid inflated prices above the National Treasury’s regulated PPE price list and the husband of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesperson Khuselo Diko reportedly scored part of this contract to supply PPE’s for the Covid-19 pandemic.”
He said Makhura had been implicated in the Gauteng Department of Health PPE scandals by the former Gauteng Health Department chief financial officer, Kabelo Lehloenya who stated in her affidavit to the special tribunal that Makhura gave her the names of the companies to appoint to supply and deliver personal protective equipment in the province.
“AngloGold Ashanti hospital on the far West Rand received R500 million worth of funding in order to equip it with extra beds and facilities to treat Covid-19 patients. The wards are still incomplete and are under construction. The completed areas have no equipment and there is no indication that the hospital will be ready for use any time soon.”
“And now we have the Gauteng Department of Education that has spent more than R431 million on sanitising schools in three months between June and August last year.”
He said it was critical now more than ever that the standard that was set with the dismissal of MEC Masuku also be applied to Makhura and that Makhura be investigated to determine the extent of his involvement in these corruption scandals as Makhura had failed in his oversight duty to safeguard the province’s coffers.
“The DA will be calling for an urgent sitting in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL) and we will be tabling a motion of no confidence in Makhura as he has shown that he is not fit to govern Gauteng. We will also be exploring other mechanisms to ensure that Makhura is held to account.”
Msimanga said he would be awaiting a full investigation by the Hawks, and would also be writing to Ramaphosa to act against Makhura as a matter of urgency.
Pretoria News