Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson will launch a full independent investigation into the Independent Development Trust (IDT) and its corporate governance problems to prevent any possible abuses and corruption going forward.

He dismissed the IDT's plans to investigate the processes followed in awarding the Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) Oxygen Plant bids, as the board of trustees is currently not quorate and cannot investigate itself, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) said.

This follows several attempts over the past weeks to obtain documentation from the IDT board regarding the PSA Oxygen Plant tender.

The tender involved awarding contracts amounting to more than R800-million to three companies to install oxygen plants in hospitals, despite two of the companies lacking South African Health Products Regulatory Authority (SAHPRA) registration, and one potentially having submitted fraudulent documentation, the department said.

“My interactions with the IDT over the past two months have raised serious concerns about governance within the organisation. I expressed these concerns in person to the IDT during a meeting regarding its quarterly performance, as well as its continued inability to finalise financial statements for the 2023/24 financial year.

“I will appoint an independent firm to investigate the alleged corporate governance failures that have led to this breakdown in trust,” Macpherson said.

Following an article in news publication Daily Maverick on October 28 about three companies that were awarded an R836-million PSA Oxygen Plant tender, despite two lacking SAHPRA registration, Macpherson requested the IDT board to provide a comprehensive account of the allegations made in the article.

The IDT provided Macpherson with an executive summary of the circumstances surrounding the PSA Oxygen Plant tender, which lacked supporting documentation, on November 1.

The IDT provided additional documentation on November 8, but failed to include the full bid documents, including signed contracts and minutes from the Bid Evaluation Committee and Bid Adjudication Committee meetings, despite the provision of the full documents being specifically requested.

Macpherson on November 19 requested the IDT board to immediately suspend the tender roll-out of the PSA Oxygen Plants owing to concerns around the tendering processes followed.

On December 5, the IDT informed Macpherson that the Department of Health had communicated its intention to withdraw the contract from the IDT.

“We cannot allow close to a billion rand in public funds to be potentially lost through alleged corrupt activities, particularly when it involves essential healthcare equipment intended to save lives. We are working urgently to ensure accountability and to hold any wrongdoers responsible,” he said.

Macpherson thanked Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi for the collaboration and support he provided. Motsoaledi had been briefed on numerous occasions and had been provided with as much information as possible.

“Motsoaledi and I worked together in the best interests of South Africans on this matter to ensure access to life-saving oxygen, and to shed light and accountability on this tender when the facts became known to us.”

“As I said when I took office, the era of corruption and abuse within the DPWI is coming to an end,” Macpherson said.