Former Gauteng MEC for Health implicated in “massive corruption”

“Chronic underfunding made the last decade of TB research one of missed targets,” said TAG Executive Director Mark Harrington. TAG's new report shows TB research funding has virtually remained at 2009 levels
Allegations stem from a 2007 tender for "smart card" technology that was never rolled out
Allegations stem from a 2007 tender for “smart card” technology that was never rolled out

This is according to court papers filed in the Gauteng High Court, which were made public yesterday by Democratic Alliance provincial legislature member Jack Bloom.

The alleged “unlawful activities” stem from 2007, when Hlongwa was Health MEC and a R1.4-billion contract was awarded to Baoki Consortium and 3P Consultants.

As part of the contract, the companies were supposed to provide Health Information System and Electronic Health Records for Gauteng hospitals and clinics. This electronic record system never materialised and a year later, Hlongwa’s successor, Qedani Mahlangu, cancelled the contract.

Bloom revealed this at a press conference today and produced court papers that showed that the NPA had lodged an application in July 2014 to seize Hlongwa’s R7.2 million Bryanston home.

The NPA has also lodged similar applications against both Baoki Consortium and 3P Consultants.

In the court documents, the NPA alleges that Hlongwa received money from Kemsing Services, a company that was part of the Baoki Consortium, to purchase the Bryanston home in cash. It also alleges that the former MEC received other perks from Baoki Consortium to award them the tender.[quote float= left]“We still live today with the dire consequences in our hospitals of the disastrous period when Hlongwa was Health MEC”

“Alleged irregularities in the award of the contract to Baoki include the non-inclusion of VAT and training costs in their bid, which enabled them to undercut Intersystems, a rival bidder,” said Bloom.

Baoki Consortium has indicated that they not will oppose the application. The consortium has also ceded its R1.2 billion claim against the department to the NPA.

The Gauteng Department of Health indicated that it would not comment as the matter was before the court, while Hlongwa’s PA said he was not available for comment.

Meanwhile, Bloom has called on Gauteng Premier David Makhura fire Hlongwa.

“While Hlongwa is innocent until proven guilty, and due process must be followed in this matter, there is a huge corruption cloud that hangs over his head that undermines Premier David Makhura’s pledge to run his administration with integrity,” said Bloom.

“We need a computerised information system to improve efficiency as soon as possible,” Bloom told Health-e News. “We still live today with the dire consequences in our hospitals of the disastrous period when Hlongwa was Health MEC.” – Health-e News.

Author

Free to Share

Creative Commons License

Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.


Related

An image of the front end of an ambulance

Gauteng the latest province to admit ambulance shortages

With just 393 ambulances on Gauteng roads, the province is far from meeting national standards for emergency vehicles despite 49 recently procured ambulances. Now one Eldorado Park family says they have paid the ultimate price for the province’s ambulance shortage.

Read More »

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Stay in the loop

We love that you love visiting our site. Our content is free, but to continue reading, please register.

Newsletter Subscription