Action SA calls for Hawks probe into Charlotte Maxeke repairs

May 25, 2026 11

ActionSA says it will write to the Hawks to investigate possible criminal conduct linked to the fire repair project at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital.

The party says the scale of the alleged misconduct warrants both a criminal investigation and stronger parliamentary oversight.

This follows Public Protector, Advocate Kholeka Gcaleka, referral findings on the hospital’s fire restoration project to the Auditor-General (AG) for further investigation into what she described as years of underspending, bureaucratic delays, and weak financial controls.

ActionSA communications Director, Matthew George, says the party will also monitor Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s implementation of recommendations aimed at addressing the hospital’s ongoing challenges.

“The damning report released by the public protector raises alarm bells about potential violations of the Public Finance Management Act. Evidence by clear findings of maladministration, irregularities, budget underspending, poor financial controls, and failures in project management show that that the report require urgent and comprehensive investigation.

Head of Internal Medicine at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg Academic Hospital, Professor Adam Mohamed, says the ongoing dispute between the Gauteng Health Department (GDH) and the Department of Infrastructure (GDID) is affecting the hospital operations.

Mohamed claims that corruption and mismanagement have forced him to step away from his position adding that conditions at the hospital have not improved despite years of interventions.

“I think the Public Protector’s report was an indictment of what we all thought that we are being played on a chess board between the Department of Health and the Department of Infrastructure; one blaming the other, but the end result was that staff, nurses, doctors, cleaners, and patients were bearing the brunt of this. The sad part is that the report only went up to 2024…. Are we functional from where we have been? The answer is No! Are we still having the exact problems in her recommendations and her findings, the answer is yes,” said Mohammed.

The Auditor-General’s review will focus on the handling of public funds at the hospital between 2021 and 2024, including whether procurement processes and National Treasury financial regulations were complied with during the restoration programme.

According to the Public Protector’s findings, only a small portion of funds allocated for the hospital’s fire recovery was spent over several years, raising concerns about inefficiencies and delays in implementation.

The report points to administrative inadequacies that may have contributed to increased costs and prolonged service disruptions at the health facility.

The Charlotte Maxeke fire in 2021 led to the evacuation of about 700 patients and the destruction of an estimated R40 million worth of hospital supplies. The Gauteng Health Department has previously rejected allegations of non-compliance with fire regulations.

The incident was the fourth major fire at a Gauteng public health facility in six years. Previous fires occurred at Carletonville Hospital in 2021, Bheki Mlangeni Hospital in Soweto in 2019, and Tambo Memorial Hospital in Boksburg 2015. In 2018, a fire at the provincial Health Department’s headquarters in the Bank of Lisbon building in Johannesburg’s CBD, claimed the lives of three firefighters.

Media Statement | Public Protector finds undue delays and maladministration in repairs to Charlotte Maxeke Hospital after 2021 fire #ethics #integrity #accountability #investigation #PPSAReports pic.twitter.com/pmjSGYbSjD

— Public Protector South Africa (@PublicProtector) May 22, 2026