Health dept needs a management shake up
20 November 2019
The Democratic Alliance (DA) is deeply concerned about the general state of the Northern Cape Department of Health and is calling on the provincial government to embark on a shake-up of senior management personnel within this department.
Aside from the ongoing chaos experienced on the ground, at hospitals and clinics across the province, relating to a chronic lack of emergency services, health care professionals, equipment and medical supplies and more, there is a growing sense that the department’s top heavy administration block finally seems to have completely lost its grip on its financial and administrative processes and is buckling under the pressure of years’ worth of maladministration and corruption.
Not only did the Health Department commit a cardinal financial sin by submitting a late audit report to the Office of the Auditor General for the 2018/2019 financial year but is has also made no progress in its other areas of qualifications over the past four years.
Even irregular expenditure incurred in 2018/2019 has shot up significantly from R412 million in 2017/2018 to an astronomical R715 million in 2018/2019. Surely, a department that is no stranger to well over a decade’s worth of disclaimers and qualifications, should by now have grasped a clearer understanding of Supply Change Management (SCM) processes?