Teboho Maruping, the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) commissioner, was on Friday placed on precautionary suspension over his involvement in the irregular R5 billion Thuja Capital jobs scheme.
Minister of Employment and Labour Nomakhosazana Meth revealed that the decision was taken following a briefing by acting director-general, Viwe Mlenzana, on Maruping’s alleged involvement in the irregular R5bn jobs scheme which the fund entered into with Thuja Capital.
“The commissioner has been placed on precautionary suspension, due to the nature of charges he is facing. These emanate, inter alia, from the alleged role he played in the conclusion of the agreement between the UIF and Thuja Holdings led by Mr Mthunzi Mdwaba, amounting to R5 billion,” the statement read.
This is the second time that Maruping has been placed on suspension from the role. He was also suspended in 2020 for more than a year after the Auditor-General (A-G) found irregularities in the payment of Covid-19 relief funds to companies and employees.
The R5bn jobs scheme was on May 28 set aside by the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria.
“IOL” reported that the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) dismissed the subsequent appeal.
Maruping was suspended after a report by the A-G found issues with the payment of the Covid-19 Temporary Employer-Employee Relief Scheme (Ters) grants.
The department indicated that following investigations by the Special Investigation Unit (SIU), Maruping was found not to have benefited from Covid-19 Ters through corrupt or fraudulent means.
“I have further mandated the Acting DG to deal with all systemic and capacity challenges within the department and its entities so that we can respond adequately to the unemployment challenges in the country,” Meth said.
Maruping joined UIF in June 2014 as chief director of operations.
Among others, he was overseeing payment of benefits, provincial support, call centre operations, and compliance. In December 2016 he was appointed as the UIF commissioner.
His early work life started out in the mining industry where he worked at Goldfields SA as a learner official and research in 1994.
In 2000, Maruping joined Telkom SA as a field co-ordinator and rose through the ranks. He was later promoted to team manager and quantitative analyst. He subsequently left Telkom after three years to join Absa Brokers as operations support manager.
Meth said she was mindful of the UIF’s challenges; specifically, the system challenges and the negative impact on workers, the unemployed, beneficiaries of deceased contributors and employers alike.
In 2022, the Department of Labour and Employment entered into a R5 billion deal with Thuja Capital Fund, for a jobs scheme that was supposed to create thousands of employment opportunities. The programme was to be run by the UIF in collaboration with other partners.
The deal was quickly suspended by then labour minister Thulas Nxesi. It has been subject to a protracted legal battle between the department and Thuja Capital Fund.
Last year, Thuja Capital executive Mthunzi Mdwaba claimed that he was offered a R500 million bribe by two ministers, Nxesi and Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, and ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula.
The Star
siyaboga.sithole@inl.co.za