Union applauds Tembisa hospital graft probe, laments R2bn lost

Tembisa Hospital surgical team perform a procedure on July 18, 2925.

The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) has welcomed the Special Investigating Unit’s (SIU) interim report into tender fraud and corruption Tembisa Hospital.

The report has laid bare the looting of about R2 billion in state resources through corruption, fraud, maladministration, as well as collusion and bid rigging.

Nehawu National Spokesperson Lwazi Nkolonzi says the funds could have supported health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic by providing essential resources.

Nkolonzi says, “It’s not only in Tembisa, but it’s across all the departments. If you actually were to do a thorough investigation, you would actually see that these actually expose the weaknesses, in terms of financial management, that there is no proper financial management. There are no systems in place to ensure that such corruption does not take place. It’s really unacceptable that close to R2 billion can be looted, in such a short space of time like this.”