The EFF in Gauteng has condemned the persistent irregular expenditures within the provincial Health Department.
According to records, the government has reported over R25 billion in irregular spending over the past three years, while underspending by R6.4 billion during the same period.
EFF provincial chairperson, Nkululeko Dunga, said in the 2021/22 financial year, the department spent a staggering R22 billion, primarily on security tenders, without adhering to proper procurement processes. The following year, R2.3 billion was recorded, and in 2023/24, R2.7 billion was reported.
Meanwhile, Dunga said, planned renovations costing R154 million at Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital and R29 million at Helen Joseph Hospital remained incomplete past the deadlines.
“Despite the severe state of public health, which struggles to serve the large population of the province, the Gauteng Health Department wastes a significant portion of its budget on corruption and incompetence. The Tembisa Hospital scandal, in which over R1 billion was misappropriated within a year, is a classic example,” said Dunga.
“The irregular spending and corruption are contributing to the deplorable state of public health in the province. Gauteng has the lowest number of beds per 1 000 people in the country, with just 1.2 beds per 1,000 population.”
Dunga said as of March this year, over 38 000 people were on the waiting list for surgical procedures. Operations were frequently cancelled due to a shortage of beds, limited theatre time, and infrastructure issues such as water and electricity shortages.
He said the backlog in radiation oncology and surgery stood at around 3,000 cases, while cancer patients continued to suffer and die.
“The Gauteng Department of Health had to return over R780 million allocated for cancer treatment to the Treasury. Additionally, the department spends about 20% of its budget on private lawyers and state legal services for medical negligence cases.
“Last year alone, R623 million was paid for medical negligence and malpractice cases in the province,” Dunga said.
He said without urgently addressing the corruption and mismanagement plaguing our hospitals, the commitment to improve public health in Gauteng remained an unattainable fairy-tale.
Dunga said unlike those who were rich, including politicians and their family members who could afford private medical care, many people were entirely dependant on the struggling public institutions that often lacked empathy in patient treatment.
“We urge the Gauteng government to take decisive action against those who circumvent legislation to favour their preferred contractors for public health projects.
“The EFF through its public representatives will be submitting motions in the legislature to ensure the executive is held accountable with regards to this matter. Corruption and maladministration have long deprived our people of basic services and compromised their right to receive adequate medical care and this must come to an end,” said Dunga.
Despite the dire need for improved service delivery, the Gauteng Health Department failed to spend R1.1 billion of the 2023/24 budget which ended on 31 March this year.
Jack Bloom MPL DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Health said this was revealed by the Head of Department (HOD), Arnold Malotana, at a meeting in July of the Gauteng Legislature’s Health Committee.
He said according to Malotana, they had applied to Treasury to roll over R780 million into this financial year, but approval had not yet been given.
“This means that at least R320 million of last year’s budget has been lost, and potentially a lot more if Treasury does not approve the roll over. It is likely that most of the R250 million budgeted last year for urgent cancer treatment was not spent as this is the subject of an urgent court application by the Cancer Alliance,” Bloom said.
He said the huge underspend was outrageous when there were so many unfilled posts and hospitals were falling apart.
Bloom said the unspent R1.1 million could have been used for urgent cancer treatment to save lives. It could also employ 3000 more nurses for a year or build 10 clinics.
“It's yet another example of poor financial management that plagues this department. The DA will continue to push for fundamental reforms to ensure decent health care in Gauteng hospitals. This should include the replacement of recently appointed Department Head Arnold Malotana who is reportedly being investigated for alleged corruption,” said Bloom.
In July this year, the department clarified to The Star the issue of the R1.1 billion under expenditure for 2023/24 financial year as reported to the Health and Wellness Portfolio Committee on July 25, 2024.
“The department underspent by an unaudited amount of R1.1 billion. This amount still has to be audited by the Auditor General in line with financial prescripts. This amount constitutes 1.1% of the department’s total budget,” health department spokesperson Motalatale Modiba had said.
“While the department strives to spend every cent, sometimes this is not achieved owing to a number of factors that have a bearing on the operational environment. R760 million of the R1.1 billion (and not R780 million as reported) was committed and the department has applied for a roll over.”
Modiba said the department remained committed to accelerating service delivery.
“The request for a roll-over is due to the fact that the funds were already committed and could not just be redirected to other areas,” he said.
The Star also contacted Treasury for clarification, it said: “Based on pre-audited numbers as published in terms of Section 32 of the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) by the National Treasury, Gauteng Health has underspent by R1.188 billion, of which R770 million relates to underspending on conditional grants. The rollover and surrender amounts are still based on preliminary numbers”.
The Star