- Free State Premier Mxolisi Dukwana said the province would no longer be a breeding ground for corruption.
- Dukwana was sworn in as premier on 24 February.
- Refilwe Mochoari asked him about it as well as the fate of the health department head, who is facing corruption charges.
In his first State of the Province Address, new Free State Premier Mxolisi Dukwana said the province would no longer be used as the breeding ground for corruption.
“It is imperative that we restore the integrity and credibility of our government,” Dukwana said. “We have experienced the painful truth that fraud and corruption are not victimless crimes.”
Dukwana noted the various ongoing investigations across provincial departments and said these investigations must be finalised and recommendations must be implemented.
‘No place for corrupt officials’
After being sworn in as the new premier on 24 February, Dukwana told Spotlight that officials who had pending corruption cases against them, and those who were attending court cases, would be looked into as one of the new administration’s key priorities.
When asked how he would deal with the head of the Free State health department, Godfrey Mahlatsi, who is facing corruption charges, Dukwana said the position was that those who were charged must at least be suspended from office. He said this applied to all provincial government departments and not just health.
At the time of writing, Mahlatsi was, however, still in the job.
“We also have people who are not charged, but are not doing what they are supposed to do, but they are getting salaries and all other benefits, so we need to look into all of these things,” Dukwana said.
Mahlatsi had been acting as HOD since 2020 and the previous premier, Sisi Ntombela, in 2021 permanently appointed him in the position, despite having corruption allegations hanging over him.
Mahlatsi was investigated by the Special Investigating Unit for alleged PPE tender fraud relating to an amount of R39 million that was awarded by the provincial Treasury while he was the HOD in that department. The tenders were awarded to 32 service providers who allegedly supplied sub-standard surgical gowns to the health department.
SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said the investigation had been handed over to the NPA.
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Responding to the premier’s statements, Mahlatsi said: “Look, I am an employee of government and the premier is my employer. If the premier decides to take any steps against any employee of government, it is within his right to do so. The decisions of the employer must at all times be respected.”
In addition to the SIU investigation, Mahlatsi, together with the former Health HOD David Motau – who has since been fired from his post as the registrar of the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) – and 10 other officials in the provincial health department are facing charges of fraud, corruption, forgery, and money laundering, which led to an R8.7 million loss to the department.
They all appeared in the Bloemfontein Magistrate’s Court in August 2021 and have been on bail since.
According to the spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority in the Free State, Pheladi Shuping, the court case was still pending. He said a pre-trial conference was held on 13 February and was set to continue on 22 March.
Cleaning house
According to the newly appointed ANC provincial spokesperson, Jabu Mbalula, building an ethical public service could not happen if there were questionable people with questionable standing running the government.
“The issue of ethics and building an ethical public service is very important to us, as the ANC, so those issues will have to be addressed,” he told Spotlight.
“We will ensure that the issue of senior managers, who have corruption charges behind them, will be cleaned out. It makes no sense to have people who are in charge of the affairs of society, yet they themselves have issues to answer, either in courts and so on,” he said.
Dukwana said the provincial government prioritised the implementation of lifestyle audits, in accordance with the appropriate regulatory framework.
“We are, however, not satisfied with our progress and will secure external assistance to accelerate the implementation of lifestyle audits,” he said.
Change of MEC?
While Dukwana was quite firm about the fate of corrupt officials, he would not be drawn on the fate of Montseng Tsiu, the provincial Health MEC.
Following the election of the new provincial ANC leadership in January, where Dukwana unseated Sisi Ntombela as ANC provincial chair, there was wide expectation that Ntombela and several MECs, including Tsiu, would be recalled.
Ntombela has since resigned.
Asked about Tsiu, Dukwana said nothing had been confirmed as yet.
“I will not be able to disclose such information at this moment,” he said, adding that they would consider everything and would come up with a team of men and women (provincial executive) who could do the job.
“For now, I can’t say who’s going or who’s not going, until everything is finalised.”
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When asked about the performance of the health department so far, he warned against focusing on only one department.
“The issue is, do we have an executive council that works together and makes sure that all other things are done to get what we want objectively as a province? The health department is important – but, without proper roads, ambulances will not be able to arrive at their destination. Without water and electricity, hospitals will not be able to deliver quality health services.
“Everything is interlinked. Without proper people working and providing services, you won’t have a properly functioning department. So we need to focus on how we bring about community-centred services to our people and make sure that health is not only when you go to hospital. We should deal with many other things to create a healthy society.”
‘All talk, no action’
But some opposition parties remain sceptical.
According to DA’s Roy Jankielsohn, the party will hold Dukwana accountable for his statements on corruption.
“But we don’t think that the premier will stick to his word because the people who are accused of corruption are from his own party – the ANC – which is the majority. At the end of the day, we are still led by the same old corrupt ANC, with corrupt officials.”
Jankielsohn said the province needed people with the right qualifications and skills to be appointed to government positions.
The EFF’s Coach Liphoko told Spotlight: “There is no element of him (Dukwana) being genuine about all of this. He is only pushing a political campaign for the 2024 elections. The corrupt people belong to his party and he was supposed to act immediately when he took office, but right now it is all talk and no action.”
Liphoko said he expected that Dukwana would not act on Mahlatsi.
“He knows the culprits of corruption, including those who were involved in the Vrede Dairy project and they are still occupying office. So, no, the premier only wants to be seen as a person who fights corruption for the purpose of elections.”
The provincial secretary of the nursing union, Denosa, Brian Motshabi, said the union supported the premier in fighting corruption.
“We hope he will fast-track the process as we have seen the impact of corruption on health services. It has collapsed our health system and all individuals who are implicated must account.”
*This article was published by Spotlight – health journalism in the public interest.
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