Call to Investigate department of labour employees.

Local News/ 13 November 2019, 08:02am/ The Insider Reporter

Department of labour logo: Image Labour website

Bloemfontein: UIF beneficiaries in Free State have called on the hawks to investigate the workers at the department of labour where they are “defrauded their earnings.”

Benefiaries made allegations against other officials who includes inspectors,  whom they accused of receiving bribes from employers to cub their inspection and forfeit their investigations.

Thapelo Mohale told The Insider that: “I left my job after I got dismissed, I went to labour to apply for my UIF to this date I’m still waiting.”

Another unemployed concerned person, Eunice Moreki called on the Hawks to investigate.

She claims government needs to fire corrupt officials.

“Poor people are being victimized by the corruption by workers at the department, I think police should investigate,” she said.

Meanwhile, former labour employee Thokozani Percy S’kosana, 42, was  sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for 15 counts of fraud by Wit bank magistrate court.

The former employee of the Department of Labour was attached to

the Unemployment Insurance Fund

(UIF) section.

It is reported that during the year 2012,

S’kosana fraudulently started a company

named Simajale Transport and General

Dealer and registered ghost employees

which he claimed UIF benefits on their

behalf resulting in the department losing

R63, 033.56 Upon hearing that, the Hawks serious commercial crime investigation ensued.

Consequently, S’kosana was arrested and statements from people who were falsely registered to receive UIF benefits were obtained and they were turned state witnesses.

Following a series of court appearances,

S’kosana was not only sentenced to three

years’ imprisonment but he was also wholly suspended from work for five years.

The court additionally ordered

him to pay the spent money back to the

department. Furthermore, the convict was declared unfit to own a fireman in

terms of the firearms Control act.

The Provincial Head of the Directorate

for Priority Crime Investigation in

Mpumalanga, Major General Zodwa

Mokoena , applauded the

investigation by Hawks was superb and the prosecution of the case was done accordingly.

It is alleged that numerous workers from the department around the country run companies with ghost employees just to rob the department.