International Crisis Group (ICG) Senior Consultant Piers Pigou has called for the suspension of the Health Deputy Minister Dr. John Mangwiro after it emerged that he awarded a $5.6 million contract for COVID-19 Sundries to an unregistered firm, the Daily News reports.
Pigou spoke to the publication and said:
The Health MEC (Member of the Executive Council) in Gauteng (Bandile Masuku) was dismissed on the basis of a similar preliminary investigation last week.
The correct course of action is clear. Deputy minister Mangwiro should be suspended until the investigations are complete, but preferably he should be fired.
A clear course of action must be set, and if the president was as committed to fighting the corruption scourge as he claims to be, we would see him taking decisive action.
Unconfirmed reports claim that the health deputy minister Dr. Mangwiro reportedly held a meeting one evening with Natpham’s tender adjudication team and arm-twisted the pharmaceutical to award the tender for the supply of COVID-19 sundries Young Health Care.
ZACC reportedly conformed they are investigating Dr. Mangwiro’s involvement in the deal which was cancelled later on. The scandal was reported during the same time it emerged that a company called Drax was selling COVID-19 materials to the government at inflated prices.
More: Daily News