Johannesburg - The ANC in the Northern Cape has placed one of its provincial executive committee (PEC) members on suspension following revelations by Cope that Moses Moalusi has been double dipping salaries from a local Upington municipality and the provincial government.
The ANC acted against Moalusi after Cope’s provincial leader, Pakes Dikgetsi, “exclusively’’ received a complaint from members of the ZF Mgcawu Municipality and some from the Northern Cape Provincial Agricultural Department.
The leak prompted Dikgetsi to open a criminal case against officials in the Municipality and the Agricultural Department for an investigation and criminal prosecution.
In his statement, Dikgetsi said: “The attached document was leaked by unhappy employees from the two institutions. Ethical and professional people are tired of this arrogance and criminality. What is more troubling is the blatant disregard of the Ministerial Handbook, which regulates the personnel numbers and their functions in the office of the MEC.
Nothing is called a “Portfolio Coordinator” in the Office of the MEC in the Ministerial Handbook. This fake position undermines, duplicates and usurps the duties of the functionaries in the department,” Dikgetsi wrote.
After the statement went viral on all social media platforms, ANC provincial secretary Deshi Ngxanga immediately announced the suspension of Moalusi from all ANC provincial activities. The party also promised to conduct its own investigations in the matter prior to instituting disciplinary proceedings against Moalusi.
“Owing to the allegations of fraudulent and malicious conduct that seeks to undermine the ANC revolutionary morality and renewal, we affirm that action will be taken. Our leaders are expected to uphold a high moral standard of moral rectitude,” Ngxanga said.
Ironically, more two years ago, Moalusi, while Speaker of ZF Mgcawu Municipality, was caught in a sex scandal after an explicit sex clip of him was circulated on social media. This prompted community members in March 2021 to march to the ANC district offices and ZF Mgcawu District Municipality, and they called for his immediate removal as Speaker and councillor, as well as his expulsion as an ANC PEC member and the party.
The memorandum pointed out that the sex clip scandal came “hot on the heels” of a voice note involving Moalusi, who allegedly uttered “anti-coloured and anti-ANC” statements regarding officials who were employed at the municipality.
In a press statement from people in the ZF Mgcawu district, it was indicated that “non-racialism was a bedrock principle of the ANC, where it was unbecoming” of an ANC PEC member and Speaker of the district municipality to make these utterances.
He then resigned and re-emerged later as municipal manager of the same municipality when the double dipping scandal broke.
In March this year, another top government official was arrested for double dipping. The Department of Water and Sanitation director was found to be double dipping by way of earning a salary from both the department and the Moses Kotane Local Municipality in the North West Province.
At the time, the department said: “The department upholds its stance of zero tolerance to fraud and corruption and welcomes the arrest as a sign of the government's commitment to fighting fraud and corruption.”
She was appointed in the department in April 2022 after a post became vacant, where she applied, was shortlisted, interviewed, and then appointed on merit but seemingly did not resign from her former position with the municipality.
“This matter came to the attention of the Department in September 2022 when the municipality enquired into the employment status of the aforementioned departmental official, whom it transpired was still in the employ of the concerned municipality,” the department said.