Mpumalanga Department of Education pays R2 million for 22 laptops

The Mpumalanga Department of Education has coughed up over R2 million to procure new laptops for 22 of its employees, MEC for Education in the province, Landulile Cathrine “Cathy” Dlamini, has revealed.

Dlamini was responding to a question-and-answer session in the provincial legislature this week and said the new laptops cost R91,482.50 each.

However, the total amount came to R2,020,883.45, which results in an average price of R91,858.34 — a discrepancy of R375.84 per laptop.

As the question from EFF MP Ntsako Precious Mkhabela suggested that Dlamini had received one of the laptops, the MEC clarified that she was not one of the beneficiaries of the procurement.

Dlamini said she was still using the second-hand laptop provided to her when she joined the department in July 2024.

MPs immediately asked Dlamini what brand the laptops were and what software was installed on them that might explain the high cost.

Dlamini could not answer any of the questions and promised to respond in writing. The department also has not disclosed who the supplier is or exactly who is using the laptops.

In response to the questions, Dlamini only revealed that the computers were procured for office-based staff and school principals.

This disclosure was in response to allegations that the department had overlooked Project Management Unit (PMU) guidelines when sourcing the laptops.

Dlamini’s response also indicated that one reason the machines might have been so expensive was because they were procured through the State IT Agency (SITA).

“The department did not overlook PMU processes. These materials are not classified as LTSM — that is, learner-teacher support material — and thus should be procured through the SITA contract,” she explained.

“The beneficiaries are administrators and school managers, who use these for administration processes and not for teaching and learning.”

The SITA problem

SITA is a sore point among several government agencies and the subject of controversy among different factions in government.

Its mandate requires all government departments to procure IT equipment and services from the agency.

SITA is currently tasked with the needs of over 250 national, provincial, and municipal departments.

Home Affairs minister Leon Schreiber, a DA MP, and his ANC predecessor have criticised SITA as the source of many of the customer service issues plaguing their department.

Similarly, the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development blamed SITA for impeding the functioning of South Africa’s courts.

Responding to these and other complaints, communications minister Solly Malatsi has proposed amending the regulations governing SITA.

He would like to allow smaller departments to procure their own equipment and IT services, allowing SITA to better serve bigger departments such as Home Affairs.

Chairperson of the Parliamentary portfolio committee for communications and digital technologies, Khusela Diko, slammed Malatsi’s plan, saying the SITA Act does not allow what he is proposing.

Diko said several other solutions exist to bring stability to SITA, such as appointing a new board and executive team to help the Minister achieve his intended goals.

She also suggested automating the procurement system, which she said was first proposed during South Africa’s fifth administration.

“However, Malatsi is not looking at doing any of those things. Instead, he wants to throw out the baby with the bath water and chooses to cripple the system instead of strengthening it,” Diko stated.

“There was a very good reason why SITA was formed right in the beginning, and that was to ensure that it drives the digitalisation of public service, ultimately benefiting the citizens,” she continued.

“Standardisation ensures the elimination of duplication and interoperability of our systems, but the minister doesn’t seem to be interested in giving effect to any of those.”