Joburg senior manager dismissed by council for fraud and gross misconduct

City of Johannesburg Mayor Herman Mashaba has sent out a media statement expressing his feelings about the dismissal of a senior manager, Roodepoort Record reports.

“I am pleased to report to the residents of our City that Council has officially dismissed its first Section 56 Manager. Section 56 Managers are protected by a law that requires an extensive disciplinary process to be followed,” he said.

READ MORE: Dagada: Dictator Mashaba is talking rubbish, must prove allegations

Mashaba continued, saying: “This comes on the back of the ANC laying a complaint to the public protector, and a statement released by the ANC last week, in which it accused the multi-party government of continuing to ‘purge worthy and competent staff members’.

“The official in question, Mr Molaodi Khutsoane, occupied the position of Group Executive Director of Group Corporate and Shared Services (GCSS). A forensic investigation was initiated following the discovery of the highly problematic process during the capacitation of the Office of the Ombudsman.”

According to Mashaba, Khutsoane was found guilty of all charges, which included: fraud; contravention of supply management policy; contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act; gross dereliction of duty; and gross negligence in the course of his duties.

Documents were fraudulently backdated to circumvent supply chain management policies, and capital budget to the tune of R6.5 million was expended on the ICT infrastructure, which did not become the property of the City on expiry of the contract.

The contract itself was also extended irregularly, incurring more than R600 000 in irregular expenditure after it had concluded. Residents will recall the failures of this call centre, but no penalties were instituted, despite the poor level of service from the provider.

He also mentioned that in Khutsoane’s sanction, the chairperson of the disciplinary enquiry stated: “In my view, it would be unreasonable to expect the employer to keep an employee of such calibre in its employ.”

When the residents of Johannesburg elected a new multi-party government in August 2016, they demanded an end to the protection of those guilty of wrongdoing.

“While the ANC continues to label such efforts as ‘purging’, we remain clear that those who are found guilty of improper conduct have no place in this government. There is no such thing as government money, it is public money entrusted to the City to benefit our residents.”

He explained further that it must be noted that the ANC has opposed the multi-party government’s efforts, at every turn, in this process to ensure accountability. This just confirms how the ANC had sheltered the politically connected in the administration and punished anyone who spoke out against them.

In closing, he said: “I have instructed our Group Forensics Unit in the City to lay criminal charges against Khutsoane and the Directors of the Company and to be of assistance to the NPA, in any way necessary.

“This outcome is a victory for the residents of our City, who deserve an administration that operates with the highest standards of ethics in dealing with public funds.

“I would like to express my deepest respect and gratitude to our coalition partners and the EFF for their shared commitment to combating criminal wrongdoing in the City. Together, we will achieve an administration in our City that our residents can be proud of.”

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