KEY POINTS
- The Gauteng Health Department has frozen 66 salaries due to payroll fraud.
- Employees need to verify their status or face being permanently dismissed from work.
- The Ziveze campaign aims to improve financial accountability in healthcare.
Gauteng Freezes Salaries of 66 Health Workers Over Payroll Fraud
The Gauteng Department of Health has frozen the salaries of 66 employees who failed to verify their employment status, marking a major step in its fight against payroll fraud.
This action is part of the department’s Ziveze (Reveal Yourself) campaign, launched in October 2024 to remove ghost workers and curb wasteful spending.
With 85,642 individuals currently on its payroll, the department aims to ensure that every employee is actively contributing to healthcare services.
Gauteng MEC for Health and Wellness, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko, emphasized the importance of accountability in public service.
“We have limited resources and cannot afford to pay ghost employees while many qualified healthcare workers are job-seeking and thousands need proper medical care,” Nkomo-Ralehoko said.
According to IOL, she also pointed out that any legitimate employee should have no issue with the verification process.
Employees urged to verify before permanent removal
The department has urged employees to verify their status at their local human resource offices.
Spokesperson Motalatale Modiba stressed the importance of this process, stating that it helps ensure all employees are actively working and that their records match the department’s official staff list.
However, the department has warned that those who fail to comply with verification requirements could face serious consequences.
“Employees who refuse to verify their status risk being permanently removed from the payroll, and in some cases, criminal charges may follow,” Modiba said.
Authorities believe this initiative will help identify fraudulent payroll activities and create a more transparent and accountable system for public healthcare workers.
Strengthening accountability in public healthcare
The Ziveze campaign is more than just an employee verification exercise—it is part of a larger effort to ensure responsible financial management and improve healthcare services in Gauteng.
Also, the department takes active measures to stop new payroll fraud occurrences while optimizing the use of public funds.
The Gauteng Department of Health works to build workforce integrity through the steps they implement for resource optimization.
Moreover, the officials behind this initiative believe removing ghost employees will allow necessary healthcare services to reallocate funds toward genuine professional staffing needs.
As the campaign continues, authorities are urging all employees to participate in the verification process to avoid salary suspensions or further disciplinary action.
The department maintains its accountability stance through public participation in reporting suspected payroll fraud cases.
