The Democratic Alliance’s (DA) Member of the Provincial League (MPL) Jack Bloom met with the hospital’s acting CEO Mohlamme Mathabathe to find out if the goods were indeed delivered to the hospital.
DA Gauteng MPL Jack Bloom announced steps to hold Life Esidimeni culprits personally liable for R159 million arbitration award. Picture: @DA_GPL/Twitter
JOHANNESBURG – Tembisa Hospital management said typing errors were behind an alleged buying spree of overpriced equipment.
Reports suggest the hospital purchased 200 skinny jeans, 230 face cloths and 100 leather armchairs.
The Democratic Alliance’s (DA) shadow Health MEC Jack Bloom on Wednesday met with the hospital’s acting CEO Mohlamme Mathabathe to find out whether the goods were indeed delivered to the hospital.
Tembisa hospital denied the purchase of 200 skinny jeans valued at R2,500 each.
Last year, ahead of the third COVID-19 wave in June, the hospital reportedly spent R500,000 on skinny jeans.
The hospital said the skinny jeans were a typing error and what they ordered was surgical sutures used to stitch the wounded.
Mathabathe told the DA that the confusion was brought about by coding mistakes.
Bloom was not convinced and questioned the hospital’s mistakes.
“They have given us an explanation, coding error, which I think is very weak because how many other quote ‘coding errors’ were made. I think the problem is if they can’t get the coding right what else are they not getting right?”
Likewise, the face cloths and luxury armchairs were also incorrectly coded – said the hospital.
It added standard office chairs – used by nurses in ICU – and paper cloths were delivered to the hospital instead.
“I have just visited the ICU and they are not armchairs at all. They are actually sort of adjustable chairs and certainly shouldn’t have cost as much as R5,000 each.”
Asked why there were so many coding errors – the communications team refused to comment.
