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GOVERNMENT must move swiftly to act on a damning audit report which has unearthed serious tender irregularities at Mpilo Central Hospital in Bulawayo — one of the biggest referral hospitals in the country. We reported yesterday that after taking delivery of the report by PNA Chartered Accountants, the Mpilo board of directors recommended the suspension of chief executive officer Lawrence Mantiziba, operations director Duduza Regina Moyo and finance director Charles Govo and we totally agree.

The Minister of Health and Child Care, Dr David Parirenyatwa, who already has a copy of the report and recommendations, should take immediate remedial action to stop the rot at the institution and by suspending the three officials, the government will allow time for a comprehensive examination of the hospital’s financial dealings which have so far been murky, shady and suspect to say the least.

Government should also immediately disband the hospital’s Procurement and Tender Committee after the audit report found that it was clueless about its duties and allowed Moyo to have her way. After scrutinising 838 tenders worth about $4,6 million awarded between January 2012 and December 31, 2014, the investigating team found that 444 tenders with a value of about $2,8 million flouted provisions of the Procurement Act.

At the centre of the alleged acts of impropriety is Moyo who figures in most of the irregular tender dealings. Due to the extensive network she has put in place and her overbearing lording over the Procurement and Tender Committee which she allegedly manipulated at will to determine the outcome of tenders, we contend that it would be nearly impossible to get to the bottom of the issue with her at the helm of the hospital’s operations.

According to the audit report, Moyo tempered with files to withhold evidence from the investigating team and allegedly undermined government policies and regulations of the State Procurement Board. She is also alleged to have drafted letters on behalf of suppliers claiming money from the hospital and deliberately awarding multiple tenders to the same individuals in different company guises.

The auditor recommended that Moyo be reported to the police for fraud. We completely concur. Moyo appears to have personally benefited from most of the tender kickbacks and was the “nerve centre” of the orgy of plunder which was underway at the hospital. On Mantiziba, the report noted that he had failed to put in place a system of checks and balances in the awarding of tenders. This left the system open to abuse and led to the hospital being prejudiced of millions of dollars.

The auditors recommended that he be charged with gross negligence. Again we agree. The CEO appears to have been sleeping on the wheel and for some reason, allowed the operations director to have her way. As overall head of the hospital, he is responsible for each and everything that happens there.

For that he is equally culpable for the haemorrhaging of the hospital finances and should stew alongside his underlings. The report also shows Govo was grossly negligent as he would pay money to suppliers without tax clearances. For authorising payments to companies without withholding tax, the auditors correctly suggested that he be reported to the police for tax fraud.

The board members, in their letter to the minister dated March 3, said they believed the audit was “a solid indicator of serious acts of misconduct at the hospital on the part of the chief executive officer, the director of operations and the finance director”, adding: “As such, swift action has to be taken for order, transparency and accountability to be restored at the hospital. The board further request that the findings of the investigation team be made public as the matter is already in the public domain.”

We commend the board for the bold decision to recommend the suspension of the top officials to facilitate thorough investigations and hope the minister will act swiftly to implement the recommendation.

Mpilo is a huge institution serving the southern region of the country and it cannot be allowed to crumble due to the actions of a coterie of money-grabbing corrupt officials. The hospital’s scarce resources have been pillaged in the most shameful of manners and the culprits must pay.