Why are Gauteng hospitals getting food from fishy Limpopo contract?
The Gauteng Health Department has spent R23.6 million buying food for Gauteng hospitals through a fishy Limpopo contract that includes companies not registered to supply food.
This is revealed by Gauteng Health and Wellness MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko in a written reply to my questions in the Gauteng Legislature.
According to the MEC, the department opted to use a Limpopo provincial government contract for food as there was “a shortage of food provisions due to suppliers awarded contracts via the request for quotation (RFQ) not being in a position to deliver.” Food ordered so far from Limpopo includes fruits, vegetables, dairy products, fish, eggs and bread.
When I asked why it was not possible to buy these items under contract in Gauteng, they replied that the department “is in the process of establishing a contract for food.”
There are 54 Limpopo companies listed as suppliers of food to Gauteng hospitals, but many are not in the food business, including 7 construction companies! Why is an engineering company, a security firm, and a motor workshop supplying food?