Sunday World reports that black businesses cried foul following allegations of being sidelined in the allocation of multimillion-rand contracts for purchasing equipment including ventilators and personal protective equipment (PPEs).
According to the Sunday tabloid, government had centralised the procurement of PPEs in the office of the Chief Procurement Officer, Estelle Setan in a bid to save money. “Setan’s office has appointed Tshwane-based Imperial Health Sciences (IHS) as the agent to help with the implementation of the system,” the article says
Black Business Council CEO Kganki Matabane said to newspaper, they have asked government and Business for South Africa (B4SA) a list of companies that have benefited from government’s procurement of equipment related to the fight against the coronavirus.
“It is unfortunate that we have to constantly remind people that the constitution of the Republic of South Africa and the Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Act are not suspended,” Matabane told Sunday World.
“We have noticed some actions by those who are against economic transformation of trying to sideline black- and women-owned suppliers. We have subsequently raised this matter with people who are responsible for procurement – government, Business for South Africa and the Solidarity Fund,” he continued.
