Tebogo Msimanga |
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng is calling on MEC for Education, Panyaza Lesufi to immediately suspend Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) Head of Department (HOD), Edward Mosuwe, Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Johan van Coller and Supply Chain Management Chief Director, Samora Mhloph .This follows the Special Investigative Unit’s (SIU) report findings that 173 service providers appointed to decontaminate Gauteng schools were not accredited and not on the Central Supplier Database.
The Gauteng Department of Education irregularly spent more than R431 million on decontamination of schools within three months.
The SIU has frozen the assets of 14 entities linked to over R431 million school decontamination tenders. The SIU was granted an order by the Special Tribunal to freeze assets and bank accounts worth R40.7 million which belong to seven companies, five individuals and two family trusts, to which the department awarded contracts.
DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Education Khume Ramulifho said this is a step in the right direction “to ensure that they recover all our monies meant to ensure that our children receive quality education and are taught in a conducive environment.”
“We will not allow the behaviour of three individuals to bring the department that have a crucial role to play on the future of our children, to its knees.”
The DA said it will continue to monitor the progress of the SIU investigation to ensure that those who are implicated are brought to book and pay back every cent.
