Matilda Gasela attends the 10th Ke Moja Recognition and Awards Ceremony held at the Birchwood Hotel and Conference Center on October 24, 2022 in Johannesburg. (O.J. Koloti/Gallo Images)
- The contract of Matilda Gasella, who is responsible for Gauteng DThe social development sector has ended.
- Despite the Special Investigation Unit's recommendation for criminal prosecution, Mr. Gasela was transferred from the Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Reform.
- Ms Gasela is facing new allegations of tender fraud worth R250 million committed while she was with the Gauteng Department of Social Development.
- While with the department, Mr. Gasella led several forensic audits.
According to GroundUp, Gauteng Department of Social Development Director-General Matilda Gasela has resigned following a series of corruption allegations dating back to her time as Director-General of Gauteng Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development.
Gasella was transferred from the Ministry of Agriculture to head of the state's social development department in July 2023, despite facing fraud charges and an intense investigation by the Special Investigations Unit (SIU).
Gauteng Social Development MEC Mbali Hlophe is also the MEC for Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development. The appointment of department heads will be made by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi.
Lesufi, responding to questions from the public prosecutor's office, Lefiloe Nseke, in state parliament on April 16, said he had seen the SIU report and that Gasela was facing disciplinary proceedings.
“We are studying the report,” he said.
Ms Ntosehe told Ms Lesufi that she would refer the matter to the Public Service Commission. “There may be a delay, because this person's (Gasela) contract ends at the end of April 2024,” Lesufi replied.
Read | Gauteng government suspends nine staff following SIU inquiry
Lesufi promised to share the SIU report with Ntushek, but Ntushek told GroundUp that this had not happened. Lesufi did not respond to GroundUp's questions by the time of publication. It will be added if received.
TimesLIVE reported in February 2023 that the SIU recommended criminal prosecution against Mr Gassella. TimesLIVE reported that the 2022 SIU report found that Mr Gasella had breached the Public Finance Management Act in a contract he signed with Enviro Mobi, which “may have committed fraud”.
Before joining the Department of Agriculture, Ms Gasela served as director of human settlements in Gauteng, where she was the subject of a forensic investigation into an irregular R85.5-million contract. Her investigation recommended disciplinary action against her, according to TimesLIVE.
Mr Gasela's contract with the Ministry of Agriculture was due to end in December 2022, but Mr Lesufi's then-spokesman Vuyo Maga told TimesLIVE that the prime minister had decided to give Mr Gasela an opportunity to respond. He said the contract had been extended for six months to allow for the establishment of the committee. Suspicion.
However, Mr. Gasella was later transferred to the social development department, which is facing multiple crises. She was appointed director.
Ms Gasella was also the subject of new allegations of fraud related to food parcels and dignity pack programs while working for the Department of Social Development. Gauteng Treasury MEC Jacob Mamabolo confirmed to eNCA that tenders worth R250-million were under investigation and that Gasela must be held accountable.
GroundUp has not yet been able to independently verify the allegations, but multiple sources at the department confirmed to GroundUp that the allegations are “accurate.”
Thirteen executives have been suspended as a result of an ongoing forensic audit of the department's funding to nonprofits, but few details have been released about the reasons for the suspensions.
One of the auditors appointed to look into grants to nonprofits is Vernon Naidoo, a former senior partner at Grant Thornton who left the firm amid sexual harassment allegations.
GroundUp reported that a letter signed by Mr. Ghasela to senior management was leaked in September 2023 announcing that Mr. Naidoo's company, FSG Africa, had been appointed to “conduct forensic audits of non-profit organizations.” confirmed. Mr. Ghasela did not respond to our questions regarding Mr. Naidu's appointment. We reached out to Mr Naidoo for comment, but he denied knowing about the allegations.
The Ministry of Social Development also appointed an independent audit firm to investigate the ministry's school uniform program.
Also read | Gauteng and KZN have the highest number of corruption complaints – report
A ministry official told GroundUp last week that Ghasela had created a climate of fear within the ministry.
“It's gotten to the point where people are very afraid of making any decisions without her approval. She's in control of every program,” the source said.
“Matilda agrees with everything. Decisions are made without proper input from staff, only to be told what to do.”
GroundUp has a leaked internal memo signed by Gasella in December 2023 that directs officials to refer contractual agreements to her as department head. This had previously been delegated to her senior officials.
In recent months, cuts to social development budgets for funding nonprofits, compounded by delays in the grant review process, have led to the closure of some organizations serving children, women, and people with disabilities. I'm being pushed into a corner.
The department's 2024/25 budget for non-profit organizations is R223 million lower than in 2023/24. In 2023, the Department disbursed R2.1 billion in grants to non-profit organizations.
The multi-million rand tribunal set up to review the group's funding applications remains shrouded in mystery. Previously, organizations could know the outcome of their funding applications before the end of the financial year. But this year, even though the new financial year started on April 1, many organizations still don't know whether they will receive funding.
The ministry's Nasi Suphani youth mass employment program, one of Lesufi's flagship projects, has also faced setbacks. News24 recently reported that 300 young people employed by the ministry have yet to be paid since they started work in February.
Gasella did not respond to GroundUp's questions, but confirmed that his contract ended on April 30th.
The Gauteng Department of Social Development did not respond to GroundUp's questions and referred us to the Prime Minister's Office.
The Prime Minister's spokesperson had not responded by the time of publication.
