DA says Gauteng health official paid out after Tembisa Hospital investigation

By Everson Luhanga

• Lerato Madyo left the Gauteng health department on 31 July 2024 after a mutually agreed separation with a secret payout.

• DA’s Dr Jack Bloom said Madyo was suspended for two years on full pay and received about R3-million before leaving.

The DA said the Gauteng health department misled the public about how its former chief financial officer left her job.

DA Gauteng shadow MEC for health Dr Jack Bloom said the department told the public in August 2024 that Lerato Madyo had resigned.

But Gauteng health MEC Nomantu Nkomo Ralehoko confirmed in a written reply to the Gauteng Legislature that Madyo did not resign.

The MEC’s reply stated that Madyo left on 31 July 2024 after a “mutually agreed separation.” Both parties signed a settlement agreement with a confidentiality clause. The department refused to say how much Madyo received.

Bloom said the settlement was authorised by the accounting officer and the Premier’s Office was informed.

Madyo had been facing disciplinary charges linked to suspicious contracts at Tembisa Hospital. Those contracts were flagged by whistleblower Babita Deokaran shortly before her murder in 2021.

Deokaran warned Madyo in a WhatsApp message. “Morning CFO, I am just worried that the guys in Tembisa are going to realise we are onto something. Our lives could be in danger,” Deokaran wrote.

Bloom said Madyo initially froze R104-million in payments linked to the contracts but later allowed them to go through.

He said Madyo was suspended on full pay for two years, receiving about R3-million while her disciplinary hearing was delayed.

“Instead of concluding this inquiry, which would probably have implicated others and led to criminal charges, she left with her pension and an undisclosed settlement amount,” Bloom said.

The DA has laid criminal charges against Madyo and will push for the settlement to be made public.

Nkomo Ralehoko said the department is “not aware of any irregularities in relation to this matter.”

Pictured above: Babita Deokaran, who warned officials about suspicious Tembisa Hospital contracts before her murder in 2021.

Image source: File