DA calls for suspension of Tembisa Hospital CEO over corruption evidence

8 August 2022

After further shocking evidence of corrupt payments by the Tembisa Hospital, the Democratic Alliance (DA) calls for the immediate suspension of the hospital CEO Ashley Mthunzi who allegedly signed off payments to more than 200 companies that murdered whistle-blower Babita Deokaran identified as “possibly fraudulent”.

According to a News24 investigation last week, the hospital paid nearly R60 million to fake companies controlled by four people. The payments were all under R500 000, using a loophole as contracts over this amount have to go out on tender.

Between May and June last year, 129 contracts were awarded to these companies at a rate of nearly three per day.

Items included 2000 hand towels costing R230 each, and 100 bonded leather wingback chairs purchased for R495 000.

Virtually all these fishy payments came after the appointment of Ashley Mthunzi who was made Acting CEO on 28 April 2021. and became the permanent CEO on 1 June last year.

I am gobsmacked by these wasteful purchases by a hospital that struggles with staff and equipment shortages, and desperately needs to be upgraded.

Meanwhile, the Gauteng Health Department refuses to take any action against its Chief Financial Officer Lerato Madyo despite damning evidence that she failed to stop the fishy payments after Deokaran warned against them shortly before she was murdered.

It’s nearly two weeks since the revelation of this massive corruption scandal, yet Premier David Makhura won’t take decisive action despite all his talk about fighting corruption.

He has not learnt the lesson from the Life Esidimeni tragedy when he allowed then Health MEC Qedani Mahlangu to remain in her position for more than four months after the first deaths were revealed by my questions in the Gauteng Legislature.

The DA will continue to push for the suspension of all implicated officials and a thorough clean-out of corruption in this matter.

Issued by Jack Bloom, DA Gauteng Shadow Health MEC, 8 August 2022