Treasury said that government departments would no longer be allowed to choose suppliers and would have to resort to open tender processes in awarding contracts for PPE and COVID-19-related goods and services.
There have been numerous reports of irregularities around COVID-19 relief funds by among others senior government officials, including the presidential spokesperson and Gauteng's MEC for Health.
The request relates to her alleged involvement in a multi-million rand tender for personal protective equipment.
Bandile Masuku and his wife, member of mayoral council (MMC) Loyiso, have been accused of influencing decisions in the awarding of a tender for personal protective equipment.
Mkhuleko Hlengwa said the PPE contract linked to King Madzikane II should be subjected to a 'comprehensive criminal investigation or a special audit by the Auditor General of South Africa'.
Gauteng Premier David Makhura addressed the media to update on COVID-19 in the province. He also spoke about the investigation of the procurement of Personal Protective Equipment in the Gauteng Health Department. #CoronavirusSA #Gauteng #COVID19
The Gauteng ANC leadership has decided that Khusela Diko, Gauteng Health MEC Bandile Masuku and his wife Loyiso, appear before the provincial integrity committee and take a leave of absence of two to four weeks.
The Gauteng African National Congress (ANC) provincial executive committee (PEC) said that Health MEC Bandile Masuku and his wife, MMC in the Joburg metro Loyiso Masuku, must take a leave of absence from their positions with immediate effect.
This followed reports that a company linked to Presidency psokesperson Khusela Diko’s husband had scored a personal protective equipment (PPE) tender valued at R125 million, raising concerns about a conflict of interest.
Presidency spokesperson Khusela Diko and her husband said that their efforts to earn an honest living had been mired in controversy but insisted there was no corruption in the awarding of a PPE contract from the Gauteng government.
Speaking at late ANC veteran Andrew Mlangeni’s Soweto home on Tuesday, Modise admitted that the current ANC leadership had been a disappointment.
The union reacted to reports that presidential spokesperson Khusela Diko’s husband was awarded a R125 million tender for the provision of PPE by the provincial Health Department.
Cosatu's call comes in the wake of presidential spokesperson Khusela Diko's announcement that she was taking leave of absence after allegations that her husband benefited from a Gauteng government tender worth R125 million to provide personal protective equipment.
The province is now firmly the epicentre of the pandemic in the country, accounting for more than 70,000 active cases.
Gauteng has almost 36% of confirmed COVID-19 cases in South Africa, and an estimated 46% of active cases.
Gauteng Health MEC Bandile Masuku on Wednesday announced that the province was preparing over 1.5 million gravesites as the surge of coronavirus cases was expected to increase rapidly.
Gauteng Health MEC Bandile Masuku said that the province was still deliberating on applying stricter lockdown regulations. These regulations had already been gazetted, he added.
