Contract fraud probed at correctional services

Senior officials at the correctional services department are facing a probe by the Special Investigating Unit and parliament over allegations of corruption and conflict of interest involving contracts awarded by a number of department officials.

The ANC in parliament has called for Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Michael Masutha to take action against department commissioner Zach Modise and his officials.

Several officials allegedly tendered for contracts, including for the procurement of the Integrated Inmate Management System (IIMS) and the R.DOMS system.

The standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) is now demanding accountability.

Scopa yesterday demanded answers from Modise and his team around the procurement of the IIMS and the endemic financial mismanagement surrounding the contract.

The committee will engage the anti-corruption task team to investigate those allegedly involved in corrupt activities and make them face possible criminal charges.

Scopa chairperson Themba Godi said his committee wanted the department to be accountable for the failure of the R.DOMS system, which cost R43 million, and to explain why there were no consequences for the failure.

What made the issue even worse was that R.DOMS was replaced with IIMS, for which the department had to pay an even more exorbitant amount of R378 million.

“Scopa has also requested the department to submit a properly detailed document on the conflict of interest by Friday,” Godi said in a statement yesterday.

The ANC study group on Scopa yesterday expressed dismay at the levels of conflict of interest and the incompetence by the department’s officials.

Study group chairperson Mnyamezeli Booi said they found it worrisome that such conflict of interest would be allowed to go unnoticed in the department under Modise’s leadership.

“The officials also appeared to not have been prepared to answer questions they had been given well ahead of today’s hearing. These department officials also failed to provide Scopa with the necessary answers on their failure to act on findings by the auditor-general on a number of irregularities within the department,” Booi said.

He said this was despite the committee having dealt with the department for the past two years.

“Such conduct by government officials undermines parliament as an oversight body to hold the executive accountable,” Booi said.

ALSO READ: 

//

For more news your way, follow The Citizen on Facebook and Twitter.