News24 reports that public works director-general Sam Vukela, who was placed on precautionary suspension in July 2020, has "earned" a salary totalling R3.3 million while waiting for his disciplinary case to be concluded.

The several court bids that Vukela has instituted against his suspension and disciplinary process are at the heart of why the matter has been dragging. He is, however, paying his own legal fees. On Tuesday officials from the Presidency briefed the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) on Vukela's disciplinary case. Vukela was initially placed on precautionary suspension by Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia de Lille in July 2020, pending the finalisation of his disciplinary proceedings. He was suspended after a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers implicated him in allegations of fraudulent contract management and irregular payments in the planning of the state funerals for Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Zola Skweyiya and Billy Modise. It is Vukela’s contention that the disciplinary inquiry, which is presently pending, is "unauthorised and cannot proceed".   Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele Gungubele told Scopa: “We need to find a different way of dispute resolution. At this point in time, everyone seems to be taking care of what the law and processes allow. At face value, 19 months of not being at work is not a good story in terms of the resources of the state. We are tied in an established process, and everyone behaves to the extent that the processes allow them. What is at stake is the resources of the state.”

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Jason Felix at News24

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