MTN South Africa has misplaced a particular tribunal “exception software” associated to the alleged irregular provide of cell units for Covid-19 screening to the Limpopo division of well being.
This comes after the Particular Investigating Unit (SIU) launched a probe into the affairs of the division, which – the unit insists – “revealed that MTN made an unsolicited proposal to produce the division with 10 000 cellphone units supposed for Covid-19 mass screenings” in that province.
“This proposal value the division R10-million. This falls outdoors the prescripts of the Public Finance Administration Act. The division of well being accepted the proposal and subsequent supply of the units,” the SIU mentioned.
“The SIU’s investigation additionally discovered that the previous head of the division, Thokozani Florence Mhlongo – because the accounting officer – allegedly uncovered the division to wasteful expenditure when she authorised the procurement of and fee for 10 000 cellphones to the worth of R10-million for Covid-19 family screening.
“The division might solely handle to distribute 388 of the ten 000 cellphones between September 2020 and March 2021, and the telephones have been distributed with out the required screening software,” the SIU mentioned.
The corruption-busting unit added that it has instituted civil motion by means of the particular tribunal “to assessment and put aside the contract and recuperate monetary losses suffered by the Limpopo division of well being”.
“Up to now, the SIU has efficiently interdicted the pension payout of Mhlongo after she resigned from her place as head of the division within the face of disciplinary motion,” it mentioned.
Civil motion
“The SIU can also be empowered to institute civil motion within the excessive courtroom or a particular tribunal in its title to handle any wrongdoing uncovered throughout investigations associated to acts of corruption, fraud or maladministration. In keeping with the Particular Investigating Models and Particular Tribunals Act, the SIU refers any proof of legal conduct it uncovers to the Nationwide Prosecuting Authority for additional motion,” the unit mentioned.
In response to a question from TechCentral, MTN confirmed that it submitted the proposal to the Limpopo division of well being for the availability of the ten 000 cellphones, and that the proposal was accepted in April 2020.
Within the summons issued by the SIU to MTN, the previous claimed that the fee made by the Limpopo well being division to MTN amounted to fruitless expenditure and that MTN have to be “disgorged” of revenue it made out of the transaction.
“MTN utilized for exception of the summons on the premise that the SIU didn’t disclose a reason for motion and by no means alleged something illegal and unconstitutional carried out by MTN,” the cell operator mentioned.
“The particular tribunal dismissed MTN’s exception software. We are actually contemplating the summons on the deserves of the case and can put together MTN’s plea in reply to the summons.” – Extra reporting © 2024 NewsCentral Media
