Mpumalanga to probe misuse of Covid-19 funds
The Mpumalanga premier, Refilwe Mtshweni-Tsipane, has established an investigating team to probe the Covid-19 spending patterns in the province.
Furthermore, this investigating team will look into the criteria used by governmental departments and its parastatals when giving out Covid-19-related tenders. MtshweniTsipane announced this during a media briefing on Wednesday.
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She also stated that the provincial government and its entities have to date spent more than R600 million for services rendered since the invocation of the pandemic and the National State of Disaster as officially announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa in March.
“I have identified a number of discrepancies related to the expenditure patterns and pricing in some departments, and agencies. And as a matter of urgency, I will appoint an independent team of investigators that will be tasked with establishing reasons for the irregularities with the specific focus on those departments,” she announced.
The premier went on to say that her administration took a conscious decision to prioritise companies belonging to young people, especially women. “It was announced during Sopa that we will empower deserving SMMEs owned predominately by youth, women and people with disabilities. But we have noted with serious concern the inequitable distribution of resources to a limited group of entities.
ALSO READ: Duo aims to promote tourism “Our investigators will also assess the criteria that was utilised to select these benefited few,” Mtshweni-Tsipane added.
She said this team will complete its work in the coming two weeks and if there is prema facie evidence of wrongdoing, a special investigating unit will be requested to probe further.
“In an effort to assist the national commitment to curtail misappropriations of funds during this pandemic, I have directed all departments and entities to prepare and provide a detailed report of all Covid-19- related expenditures incurred since the invocation of the National State of Disaster in March.
“This report will outline the full list of companies from which goods were procured from March to date. It will contain the nature and quantity of goods procured and the unit and overall costs that were incurred,” she said.
“We do this because this administration has committed itself to a clean, ethical, transparent governance for the benefit of the people of Mpumalanga.
“Since the advent of the State of Disaster, and throughout the invocation of different levels in accordance with the risk-adjusted strategy to gradually open economic activities, the provincial government and its entities has incurred expenditure amounting to R610 million,” she concluded.
