SUSPENDED BUT STILL BEING PAID

A CLOSED City of Tshwane sitting in November 2019 resolved to suspend the contract of Previn Govender as head of the municipality's emergency service.

In terms of the resolution, Govender's contract was to be declared null and void.

At the root of the matter was the fact that Govender, referred to as the “body builder” after it emerged that he had a certificate in bodybuilding, had misrepresented his qualifications and did not qualify for the position.

At the time, several other senior officials in the metro, including chief of staff Marietha Aucamp and mayoral spokesperson Samkelo Mgobozi, faced the same accusations and subsequently left.

Most of it was believed to be rooted in the tensions between then mayor Solly Msimanga and his city manager, Dr Moeketsi Mosola.

It thus came as a shock when it emerged this week that Govender had earned more than R2 million from Tshwane, despite being suspended. He was employed in the post in 2017 on a five-year contract, but the following year the skeletons regarding his qualifications jumped out of the closet.

But according to the metro, Govender was still being paid R167 000 a month despite his suspension because he was challenging his suspension in the Labour Court. Tshwane found that Govender had misrepresented his qualifications, and Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane also reached a similar conclusion.

Despite this, he continues to draw a salary from the metro. To put it mildly, Tshwane, which previously admitted to not being in good standing financially, is paying millions to a suspended official, money that could be used for other worthy causes.

The City may claim the money from him once the Labour Court matter has been settled, but why complicate matters in the first place?

Tshwane should have, and must, enforce the resolution of council – the highest decision-making body in a municipality – that Govender misrepresented his qualification and that his contract was declared null and void.