The DA in Gauteng has revealed that the provincial Health Department owed R1 billion in unpaid invoices (19 212) to its suppliers of goods and services over the last 30 days.
With the unemployment rate on the brink of collapse, these small businesses are on the verge of bankruptcy as they depend on this money to cover costs and salaries.
According to the DA’s spokesperson for health in the province, Madeleine Hicklin, the department only paid 29% of invoices within 30 days for the first quarter of the 2024/25 financial year. Meanwhile, unpaid invoices increased by 71% by the end of the fourth quarter of the 2023/24 financial year.
This was revealed by the public service commissioner, Vusimuzi Mavuso, in a recent health portfolio committee meeting.
“This is indicative of the systemic failure and unwillingness of the Health Department to deal with late payments and the devastating effect this has on service delivery throughout the healthcare system. Countless SMMEs had to shut their doors, adding to the burgeoning unemployment figures in this province, purely because of the SMMEs’ inability to continue to pay their workforce,” said Hicklin.
She noted that the health committee had to intervene, ensuring the department paid its suppliers for their rendered services and products, as they were close to being shut down.
“We welcome the fact that the committee has resolved to summon the department to a meeting to explain the consequences of the management measures that will be put in place. It is believed that the Public Service Commission has had to intervene to assist some service providers who have lodged complaints against the department for non-payment. These service providers were eventually paid, but not before they were on the verge of bankruptcy,” said Hicklin.
The DA reported that such a case occurred in 2022, where there was a backlog of 122 018 unpaid invoices for the 2021/22 financial year, resulting in more than R1bn in penalty payments to FNB (medico-legal litigations), Telkom, Eskom and others.
The department’s spokesperson, Motalatale Modiba, said a statement will be issued by the Gauteng Department of Finance in response to the pending matter.
Hicklin said the DA would continue to hold the department accountable as it had displayed patterns of not paying suppliers. “A DA government will put monthly reporting and monitoring measures in place to ensure that the Gauteng Health Department is brought into line and that the non-payment of suppliers becomes a thing of the past,” she said.
The Star