‘Action will be taken’ – Gauteng investigating ‘false’ claims Nasi iSpani CVs were dumped

The Gauteng provincial government says it is investigating the source of the videos and the images circulating on social media claiming CVs for the Nasi iSpani programme were dumped.

In a video that has been circulating on social media, men can be seen sorting out documents from the boot of a car.

While the video fails to clarify exactly what was happening, the man taking the video can be heard asking the men “What’s happening here? You can’t operate like this”.

The incident, which reportedly took place at Nasrec, has resulted in allegations that the men were dumping CVs for the advertised posts.

‘All CVs will be accounted for’

In a statement on Tuesday, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi urged applicants to not believe the allegations that their CVs had been dumped.

“Nasi iSpani is a strategic recruitment drive aimed at addressing unemployment and promoting access to job opportunities available within the Gauteng provincial government, The programme was launched on Friday, 16 June 2023. The programme saw thousands of vacancies advertised,” he said.

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“Subsequent to the launch, there has been voice notes and images which seek to discredit the programme. In the voice notes, it is alleged that the CVs of some of the applicants who applied for the advertised vacancies through the Nasi iSpani campaign at some of the 22 walk-in centres were dumped and will not be processed as per the normal recruitment process.

“We wish to allay all the applicants’ fears that all the CVs that were received via the jobs portal and at the 22 walk-in centres will be accounted for, and the various departments and entities are currently busy with the capturing process.”

Once this process has been completed, each of the applicants will receive a reference number confirming receipt of their application via SMS over the next two weeks, said Gauteng.

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“We wish to assure all applicants who submitted their applications physically that their information was captured on the register they completed after submitting their applications. If their CVs cannot be found, we will contact them and ask them to resubmit before the closing date which is 14 July 2023,” said Lesufi.

The office of the premier has launched an investigation into the matter, to determine the source of the claims.

“Action will be taken,” said Lesufi.

Nasi iSpani must be monitored

Meanwhile, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has called for an independent body to monitor the Nasi iSpani programme.

Speaking to Newzroom Afrika, EFF Gauteng spokesperson Dumisani Baleni accused the Gauteng government of preying on the desperation of young people.

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“We have no issues with the jobs themselves as we have always said that the vacancies must be filled. The issue is with regards to the timing because we’re heading towards the elections,” said Baleni.