Public works director-general Sam Vukela was suspended this week after being implicated in huge overspending on state funerals.
The suspension coincided with a report that the company, Crocia Events, linked to allegations against Vukela and flagged during an investigation of large payments for the funerals of three ANC struggle stalwarts, had secured the contract for the funeral of veteran Andrew Mlangeni on Wednesday.
TimesLIVE reported that, two weeks ago, the standing committee on public accounts received a copy of the PwC report into the expenditure on funerals of struggle veterans Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Zola Skweyiya and Billy Modise, showing some items were hugely inflated, allegedly in favour of Crocia Events.
The report said the three funerals cost taxpayers a whopping R76m, with the department spending, among other amounts, R7m to hire padded chairs, leather couches and scatter cushions, R2.47m for draping, R470,000 for serviettes and R695,000 for orchestra equipment for Madikizela-Mandela’s and Skweyiya’s funerals.
Vukela is implicated in alleged financial irregularities and approving the payment of invoices even though there were glaring irregularities.
In a statement on Wednesday, public works minister Patricia de Lille said: ‘I confirm that on Tuesday July 28, I placed the director-general of the department of public works and infrastructure, advocate Sam Vukela, on precautionary suspension – effective as of today – pending the finalisation of the disciplinary processes instituted against the DG.’
The action followed reports she had received by PwC, which investigated allegations of irregularities related to the provision of moveable infrastructure for official funerals, and by the Public Service Commission, which investigated allegations of irregular appointments within the senior management service of the department.
De Lille said an internal disciplinary process chaired by a senior advocate would start soon.
TimesLIVE reported that Crocia Events, owned by socialites Sammy Mashita and wife Pheladi Mphahlele — who in December 2018 married in a three-day society wedding at which US R&B star Anthony Hamilton performed — was appointed by the Department of Public Works on Monday to arrange Mlangeni’s funeral.
Mashita confirmed the appointment, but declined to say how much the department would be charged.
In a strongly worded column on News24 yesterday, Mpumelelo Mkhabela, a former parliamentary correspondent, editor of the Sowetan and political analyst, said. ‘To add to the assault on Mlangeni’s legacy, the company hired to provide funeral services had been fingered in wrongdoing, such as inflating of prices in previous state funerals.