Macpherson says he's not snubbing Parly committee or refusing to hand over report on oxygen plant tender

Public Works Minister Dean Macpherson says he has not been deliberately snubbing Parliament’s portfolio committee, nor is he purposefully refusing to hand over a forensic report into a hospital oxygen supply tender awarded by the Independent Development Trust (IDT). 

Parliament’s portfolio committee on Wednesday blocked department officials from presenting a summary of the report, saying they wanted the actual document.

But Macpherson said he could not do that while the scope of the investigation has been expanded to include the health department officials and while criminal and disciplinary proceedings were still underway.

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The portfolio committee’s relationship with Macpherson has since his appointment, become increasingly acrimonious, as meetings of the committee often clash with those of Cabinet, leaving Deputy Minister Sihle Zikalala to face MPs’ wrath over investigation reports such as the Telkom Towers project and the George building collapse not being tabled.

But Macpherson said he had explained in letters to the committee chairperson why he could not release the findings of the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report into the Independent Development Trust, all of which had gone unanswered. 

"There’s an ongoing disciplinary hearing, and the Hawks are investigating the matter criminally, and so you can’t just put big pieces of evidence into the public until those matters have concluded."

He’s defended a decision to release a summary of findings to the public through the media, saying he owed the public an explanation for the alleged corruption.

IDT CEO Tebogo Malaka has subsequently been suspended.

"If we had waited any longer because Parliament was in recess then, some of the problems we’ve seen in the IDT would have persisted. The IDT board acted very quickly on that information."

Committee chairperson Carol Phiri has demanded that the committee be presented with the forensic report by Friday, and said she would entertain suggestions from MPs to hold a meeting in-camera to protect the information.

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