Department warns against procurement scam

MBOMBELA – A fraudulent procurement tender is doing the rounds, and the provincial Department of Health has warned people not to fall for it.

The request for quotations was recently discovered as fake by an observant, prospective victim, who approached the newspaper.

She was worried that someone else may fall victim to the scam. She spoke to the newspaper on condition of anonymity after she received an email, requesting her to submit a quote for the provision of 87 surgical cameras to be delivered to Bongani Hospital in Hazyview.

Thinking she may as well throw her name in the hat, she embarked on research to find the products with the specified code, and discovered a limited number of companies on the Internet which supply the products in South Africa.

One company, where she dealt with a “Michael”, wanted a 50 per cent deposit on its approximately R100 000 quote. She submitted her bid and sure enough, won the tender.

She also discussed it with a friend who advised her to make sure she registered as a service provider with the provincial government.

The woman then noticed that the email was not sent from procurement@doh.gov.za. This was only the sender’s name, the real email address appeared as a mail account.

The cellphone number of the so-called procurement officer did not work, and while she repeatedly requested the registration documents from him, she was told “not to worry about it”.

Moreover, the supplier wanted the deposit, while the “department” promised full payment, but only on delivery.
At this point she was convinced that she was being played, but played along, seeing where it might lead.

Both the “department” and supplier kept straight faces as the one demanded the “urgent order” while the other demanded payment.

Meanwhile she discovered another company also supplying the cameras. When she phoned the number, she got through to none other than the same “Michael”.

The reference of  cropped up elsewhere. In April 2014 Sanral issued a warning that its name and logo had fraudulently been used in a Request for Quotation emailed to various companies, for the supply of long-run road cameras.

“Please do not respond to these requests. Sanral will not be liable for any payments relating to this RFQ,” the company said in a statement.

When she approached the Hawks she opened an enquiry into their existing investigations into the matter.

Mpumalanga Department of Health spokesman Mr Dumisani Malamule confirmed that the request is bogus.

“The letterhead and font type is wrong. Also, the national department will never request something on behalf of a provincial department. All provincial departments do their own procurement.

“On issues of security, like if we want cameras, the Department of Community Safety, Security and Liaison will get involved. And whenever an official’s name appears on the specifications, there will always be a landline telephone number, not only a cellphone as in this case.”