Samkelo Ngubane still HOD despite being arrested for fraud

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Samkelo Ngubane still HOD despite being arrested for fraud
PERKS AND PRIVILEGE: The head of Mpumalanga's cooperative governance department Samkelo Ngubane continues to report for duty even after being arrested and charged with corruption relating to the Covid-19 PPE procurement. PICTURE BY Twitter

He was arrested with three others and charged with fraud after government was allegedly made to pay R5.9-million buying PPEs at shockingly inflated prices during the Covid-19 pandemic.


The DA in Mpumalanga has cried foul over the government’s failure to place Samkelo Ngubane on suspension pending the finalisation of his criminal case at the Nelspruit Magistrates Court.

Ngubane was arrested and charged with fraud and breaching laws governing government finance management together with three others by the SIU in June 2022.

ALSO SEE: Mahlasedi Mhlabane suspended over corruption allegations

He is the HOD for the Mpumalanga department of co-operative governance and traditional affairs – now run by MEC Mandla Msibi.

The matter concerns Covid-19 PPEs that were bought by the department at R5.9-million in March 2020. The PPEs were sold to government at inflated prices.

ALSO SEE: Refilwe Tsipane investigates Covid-19 corruption

The DA this week told the legislature how Ngubane is still coming to work despite the dark cloud hanging over his head.

Samkelo Ngubane still HOD despite being arrested for fraud
Mpumalanga Cogta HOD Samkelo Ngubane

“We suspect that he is in a position to affect the outcome of the investigation if he is allowed to stay in office,” the DA’s Trudie Grovè-Morgan said Friday morning 4 November 2022.

She said people like Ngubane and his co-accused Raymond Manzini (45) – a director of the same department – his brother Chris Manzini (33) and Moses Ndlovu (61) “do not belong in public service”.

They are out on R10 000 bail each…

“The DA called for the provincial government to suspend Ngubane until the outcome of the investigation against him.

“It is not fair that Ngubane is still drawing a salary from taxpayers who he has allegedly defrauded using his influential position in the department of CoGTA,”
Grovè-Morgan said.

(edited by ZK)
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