The Special Tribunal has granted a preservation order to the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to freeze the pension benefits of former Limpopo Health Department HOD Thokozani Florence Mhlongo.

The order interdicts the Government Employees Pension Fund from paying out or transferring any benefits due to Mhlongo while civil proceedings to recover losses suffered by the department because of dodgy Covid-19 tenders are under way, according to SIU spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago.

"The SIU approached the Special Tribunal to freeze pension benefits of Dr Mhlongo after she resigned with immediate effect in June 2022 in the face of a disciplinary hearing, which emanated from SIU investigations into the affairs of the department relating to the procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE) in response to the Covid-19 pandemic," said Kganyago.

The SIU investigation uncovered irregularities in the appointment of service providers for the supply and delivery of PPE items, which resulted in the department incurring irregular expenditure of around R180 million.

"Furthermore, the SIU investigation revealed that Dr Mhlongo, as the accounting officer, allegedly exposed the department to a wasteful expenditure when she authorised the procurement and payment of 10 000 cellphones to the value of R10 million for Covid-19 household screening.

The department could only manage to distribute 388 of the 10 000 cellphones between September 2020 and March 2021, and the cellphones were distributed without the required screening application," added Kganyago.

The SIU investigation also revealed that after the cellphones were counted while in storage, the department distributed 9 588 cellphones to community healthcare workers for Covid-19 vaccination without the required application installed.

"The SIU will continue to pursue officials who resign in the face of an investigation or in the face of disciplinary action by freezing their pension benefits and institute civil litigation to recover financial losses suffered by state institutions," said Kganyago.

Limpopo health department spokesperson Neil Shikwambana said the department did not comment on SIU investigations and referred News24 to the premier's office. The premier's spokesperson, Willy Mosoma, referred News24 back to the provincial health department.