Challenge on KZN medical waste deal

KwaZulu-Natal Health Department officials came in for a tongue-lashing and a warning from members of the provincial legislature to “start saving money” for a court battle with the company contracted to collect medical waste at health facilities. Health portfolio committee members on Tuesday heard that the department had long been trying to free itself from a contract it entered into with Compass Waste in the 1990s. MPLs demanded to know of the officials how the department had allowed such a situation, and whether the correct tender processes had been followed in awarding the multi-million-rand contract. Committee chairwoman, Lizzie Shabalala, said newspaper reports last week about medical waste collection at clinics around eThekwini had prompted her to ask about the contract with Compass. The Daily News’s sister paper, The Mercury, reported that medical waste had not been collected from the regional clinics because services rendered had not been paid for.

Credo Mlaba, the department head of legal services, told the committee the matter had been partially resolved. “We concluded an agreement with Compass Waste. We got engaged in very long negotiations recently. “This whole thing started in the 1990s, but for some reason the contractor worked on a month-to-month basis. In our last meeting, they agreed to sign a contract that could see an end to this, but had an issue with signing dating back 18 months,” said Mlaba. He said Compass had finally agreed to the contract, but had reserved the right to approach the courts to challenge the duration, said Mlaba. “When I joined the department, this issue had been there, and I was told that the contract had gone to tender when their initial three years lapsed, but (Compass) were asked to continue with the work while new tenders were invited.

“This month-to-month basis started then, but as the legal department, we are working towards ending this. We expect them to fight this in court, because in all the meetings we had with them, they brought a group of advocates. We are ready for them.” Portfolio committee member, Jomo Sibiya, tore into the department, questioning processes followed. “To have one company providing services to a department on a monthly basis is disturbing. What about other companies out there that need government work, as per the same government’s mandate to support small businesses? “To have this one company monopolising this opportunity has been wrong from the beginning. This matter needs to be closely monitored. Save money for the looming court battle because this company will not let go without a fight.

“There are too many questions about this matter. Is the company BEE compliant? Why has the department allowed this to get to where it is now? Who stands to benefit at the expense of many other blackowned companies which have been denied an opportunity to compete in this government tender? Was the job sent out to tender in the first place? This can’t be right,” said Sibiya. The DA’s Imran Keeka said if the contract was open to tender, then the department should be able to furnish proof to that effect. In February last year, The Mercury reported that there was dissent in the department after a decision to divide the R150 million, three-year waste contract into four regions. By then Compass had been providing the service for some years. Compass appealed and won. The medical waste management company, which lists four white directors on its website, got back the regions, beating Ecocycle Waste Solutions, which lists two black shareholders. Company director Ian Durandt said he would respond to detailed questions on Wednesday.