The KwaZulu-Natal health department has appointed Dr Lindiwe Simelane to head up the department, ten days after former head Dr Sibongile Zungu was told that her contract would not be renewed.
Department spokesperson Sam Mkhwanazi on Friday confirmed Simelane’s appointment as acting head, replacing Zungu.
An internal email, a copy of which is in the possession of News24, was sent out on Friday morning to all staff confirming her appointment.
The email sent by Prasheeka Padayachee, the general manager for executive support services in the department, reads: “The management and staff of all health institutions are advised that Dr MLB Simelane is the Acting Head of Department with effect from 1st April 2015 until further notice.
“All correspondence must therefore be addressed to the Acting Head of Department accordingly.”
Corruption allegations
Zungu was appointed on a five-year contract that ended last August. She was then appointed on a monthly basis following applications for the position and she was set to be re-appointed for a further five years, when KwaZulu-Natal Premier Senzo Mchunu delayed her appointment pending the outcome of an inquiry.
The inquiry, headed by Professor Fikile Ndaki, was appointed following allegations of corruption and mismanagement levelled by the National Education Health and Allied Workers Union.
At the end of last month she was informed that the contract would not be renewed at the end of March and she launched a legal challenge to the decision. It is set to be heard in the Durban Labour Court later this month.
According to the health department’s website, Simelane was the general manager in charge of clinical support.
News24
