The Gauteng Health Department has slammed DA health spokesperson and member of the provincial legislature Jack Bloom for “sensational allegations” suggesting that suspended Tembisa CEO Ashley Mthunzi was hired while having a disciplinary record.
The department said on Wednesday that Bloom had distorted the facts by alleging that the department had falsely denied that Mthunzi was appointed while facing a disciplinary charge after he was served with a final written warning.
On Monday, Bloom said Mthunzi was hired in spite of the charges made against him. Bloom alleged that Gauteng Health MEC Dr Nomathemba Mokgethi denied that Mthunzi had been found guilty on a misconduct but added that he had information disproving Mokgethi's denial.
“When I asked a question challenging this denial I had information that he was given a final written warning for misconduct on 15 September 2021,” Bloom asserted.
Gauteng Health spokesperson Motaletale Modiba said Mthunzi was not facing any disciplinary action when he was hired as CEO of Tembisa Hospital.
“The department would like to state categorically that at the time of his appointment, Dr Mthunzi was not facing any disciplinary charge or action. Dr Mthunzi was not served with any final written warning and there is currently no disciplinary process against him as alleged by Bloom,” he said.
Modiba said that on September 15, 2021, former acting head of department Dr Sibongile Zungu signed a report prepared by an internal investigator requiring that Mthunzi and other officials should be given final written warnings without applying the principle of hearing the other side of the matter.
Modiba said the MEC, when responding to a recent question at the legislature, indicated that the matter was further investigated with findings made including the fact that the investigator did not follow due process during the investigation. Modiba added that the MEC's recent response to Bloom's question was correct in that Mthunzi was not found guilty.
He said the MEC “was correct in stating that Dr Mthunzi was not found guilty of any previous misconduct charge at the time of responding to the legislature question on 20 June, 2022. The accounting officer and head of hospital were not aware of the existence of the report in question.”
“The department dismisses any assertion that the appointment of Dr Mthunzi was dodgy and wishes to place it on record that this appointment followed open and transparent recruitment processes,” Modiba said.