The Special Investigating Unit (SIU), which has been given sweeping powers to investigate Covid-19 procurement irregularities, has itself been accused of flouting regulations by irregularly appointing a company to make face masks for its staff.
In a scathing letter to justice minister Ronald Lamola, the unit's head of strategy, Ziphozenkosi Mguli, accuses its CFO, Andre Gernandt, of instructing officials to handpick a specific company for the contract without following tender processes.
His letter also levels several allegations at SIU head Andy Mothibi, accusing him of the irregular appointment of executives, maladministration, abuse of power and the irregular awarding of contracts.
The allegations come at a time when South Africans are pinning their hopes on the SIU to expose corruption in Covid-related procurement contracts.
Mothibi has dismissed all the claims, saying Mguli's complaint could be motivated by the fact that he himself is being investigated following allegations of recruitment irregularities.
They do what they please and manage the organisation alongside him
Last month President Cyril Ramaphosa issued a proclamation authorising the unit to investigate all allegations of government procurement irregularities in relation to Covid-19.
The proclamation followed widespread outrage at revelations that public officials were dishing out contracts worth hundreds of millions of rands to politically connected business people, friends and family without following tender processes.
In his letter, Mguli accuses Mothibi of governing by decree and reducing the SIU's executive committee to a powerless structure while he "runs the organisation like a chaotic small enterprise, where he is like a school principal and others are his pupils".
He alleges that, among other things, Mothibi "conspired" to retrench an executive; ignores protocols, resulting in "poorly conceived" investigations; excluded key executives from the planning for an SIU tribunal, which resulted in operational setbacks; sidelines executives who challenge his decisions; allows unions to appoint people to positions for which they are not qualified; "monopolises" executive committee meetings by cutting off questions; and is "indecisive, confused ... and unable to make decisions on critical issues".
Mguli said the SIU head relied "excessively" on costly external legal opinions, despite the unit having its own legal capacity.
Mothibi, through his spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago, said Mguli's complaint had been orchestrated to tarnish the name of the SIU, and could be motivated by the fact that Mguli is being investigated following allegations of recruitment irregularities.
"These allegations were laid by Nehawu [National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union]," Kganyago said.
Mguli denied this, saying there was no investigation against him. The claim that he hired an employee irregularly was conceived by Nehawu to get back at him for questioning the union, he said.
Several other SIU members who spoke to the Sunday Times on condition of anonymity said they were also concerned at the "excessive" use of external law firms.
One complained about Mothibi's relationship with Nehawu.
"They do what they please and manage the organisation alongside him."
Kganyago denied this.
In June the SIU appointed a company called SA Doctors App to supply it with 1,600 cloth masks for R58,000. While the company is registered on the Treasury's central supplier database, it was not on the list of companies approved by the Treasury to supply cloth masks.
In April the Treasury instructed public officials to buy cloth masks only from a list of pre-approved companies that are also registered with the department of small business development. SA Doctors App does not appear on the list of face mask suppliers approved and published by the Treasury.
In his letter, Mguli said the Treasury had sent the SIU a list of companies on the supplier database for personal protective equipment.
"Supply chain management members were instructed by the CFO to include a company that is not on National Treasury's list and again the company was awarded the contract," his letter says.
"It is not the first time that the CFO has instructed supply chain members to include certain companies in procurement and these companies always coincidentally are awarded contracts."
Gernandt referred queries to Kganyago, who said Gernandt did not issue any instruction for the appointment of any specific service provider.
"A normal competitive procurement process was followed and the evaluation was in accordance with National Treasury regulations and the SIU's supply chain management policy."
He said the additional requirement that cloth masks should be bought from companies registered with the department of small business development was not practical as it narrowed down the number of suppliers, which in turn hiked prices.
The CEO of SA Doctors App, Willie van Zyl, said the company would not be able to comment before this coming week.
Lamola's spokesperson Chrispin Phiri said the ministry has received Mguli's complaint.
"The letter states that further allegations will be brought against Mothibi. These allegations have not been furnished yet. As a result, the ministry awaits a full disclosure before initiating processes. That way the minister will be equipped with full facts."
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