Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi has defended the provinces decision not to fire poor-performing heads of department Hods and instead retain some of them and give others new roles in different departments.
Lesufi was speaking at a media briefing on Sunday in Midrand, where he addressed recent forensic reports that are set to be released to the public.
He said from the 47 reports that he released last month, the province had decided to shift two Hods, retain five and appointed acting Hods in the departments of the environment sports, arts and culture education and social development, while those for the health and community safety departments, were pending.
Explaining why he did not fire the implicated Hods, Lesufi said: The move removal of Hods for me was important, it has never happened before. It is for the first time in the history of this province that, en masse, we remove Hods for non-performance and underperformance in terms of expenditure.
He said regarding the four departments where Hods have been removed ...I wish it were like dealing with politicians where we can just say we have reshuffled, go home.