The Provincial government confirmed that five charges were laid against Moyane and a full disciplinary process was carried out.

“The HOD was found guilty only on the first charge of negligence related to the approval of the Bid Adjudication Committee recommendation. Based on the outcomes of the disciplinary hearing, the chairperson decided that a written warning be issued as a sanction,” reads a statement issued.

READ | HOD and officials to face disciplinary action

The statement also reveals the recovery of over 80% of the funds claimed from the service provider in connection with the 22 laptop tender investigation. An amount of R685 712.70 has been recovered, with the remaining balance of R170 000.00 expected to be settled by the end of January 2026.

Premier Mandla Ndlovu welcomed the recovery of the funds, emphasising the urgent need to finalise the ongoing disciplinary hearings.

“This is a positive step, but we must ensure that the full amount is recovered. I am pleased that the service provider has assured the department that the remaining balance will be settled by the end of the month. I am also glad that the disciplinary hearing concerning the HOD has been concluded,” said Ndlovu.

ALSO READ | Dept of Education laptops procurement investigation almost finalised

Moyane was suspended since May 2025 following a forensic investigation into the procurement of 22 laptops and a printer, which allegedly cost the department R92 000 for each laptop. She is expected to resume her duties on Monday, January 19, 2026.

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Premier, Mandla Ndlovu briefed the media this morning and outlined the findings. He said the procurement process was flawed and the service provider did not even deliver the laptops that met the specifications.

According to the premier, the procurement does not comply with both Section 217 of the Constitution read with the provisions of Section 38 and 45 of the PFMA, as the process cannot be said to have been fair, equitable, transparent, competitive and cost-effective. He said the supplier did not comply with the terms of the purchase order and delivered laptops of a lesser quality than what was approved and paid for.

“The departmental officials irregularly specified the brand they required instead of the functionality, resulting in only specific suppliers responding to the issued Request For Quotations (RFQ). The departmental officials irregularly invited bids from a particular brand of suppliers and within the limited locality of Mbombela despite the fact that it was required that they expand the scope to all suppliers of all brands provincially,” explained the premier.

READ | Dept of Education laptops procurement investigation almost finalised

He added that the department accepted delivery of laptops not in accordance with the specification. The initial specifications were varied without a proper process and by an official not duly authorised. The conditions specified by the Bid Adjudication Committee to negotiate the price prior to the order being issued were not adhered to. Then the Department procured laptops of similar specifications, which could have been procured for a lesser amount had due diligence been applied.”

“We intend to institute disciplinary action against all implicated officials, including the HOD, in line with the applicable prescripts, such as, but not limited to, the Public Service Act,1994, the Public Service Regulations, 2016, the Public Finance Management Act, 1999 and the Senior Management Handbook,” said the premier.

Some of the recommendations include conducting lifestyle reviews on all officials of the department implicated in the report, which review may lead to lifestyle audits, in line with the applicable prescripts. As a result of the investigation which raises questions regarding the governance of the department it is necessary to conduct a governance review to establish the state of the department.

READ | Public Works senior official dismissed for misconduct

A progress report will be made available regrading the implementation of all the recommendations flowing from this Investigation report on June 30, 2025.

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The association made the call during the provincial education department’s Strategic Planning Workshop held at Premier Hotel The Winkler on 1 April, 2025.

The aim of the workshop was to finalise the department’s Medium Term Development Plans and the 2025/26 Annual Performance Plan. The association’s provincial chairperson, Elphas Maseko stated that everyone should work towards prioritizing the school’s best interests and fostering its growth.

READ | “Education is headed for better times” – MEC Dlamini

” I call upon all the parents in Mpumalanga to support the SGB’s and SGB’s to do their dues as well more especially when it comes to recruitment and I would appreciate if and only if our circuit managers should not interfere with the recruitment process from the schools because by virtue of that they think we are appointing wrong people in correct positions whilst they are also influencing the same process by making sure that they bring their own people into the space, that cannot be tolerated”

The Head of Department, Lucy Moyane, stated that they are working towards the advancement of teaching and learning.

VIDEO: The HOD Lucy Moyane outlining the outcome of the workshop

Moyane further highlighted that department seeks to strengthen governance by working together with their schools and management.

“We reflected also on our governance issues, our audit outcomes and there is a commitment from everybody that is here to really work very hard for this department to have a better audit opinion. We currently have an unqualified audit opinion but we will be striving towards a clean audit and everybody has committed to making sure that that happens. We know that we are also judged with our matric results, definitely we are moving to 90 percent” Moyane added.

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