ANALYSIS: Babita’s revenge: State seizes R326m empire of Tembisa Hospital tender kingpin

“Morning CFO, I am just worried that the guys in Tembisa are going to realise we are not releasing payments and know that we are on to something. Our lives could be in danger,” said slain Gauteng health department official Babita Deokaran.The WhatsApp to her supervisor Lerato Madyo in 2021, weeks before she died, is reported in Jeff Wicks’ book, The Shadow State – Why Babita Deokaran had to die. It revealed Deokaran was on to a Tembisa Hospital extraction scheme, where tenderpreneurs set up companies and won tenders at just under R500,000, the amount above which stricter conditions apply.While six men have been convicted of the hit on the whistleblower, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) on Monday put another nail in the coffin of Babita’s soft vengeance, where society has been galvanised into action.Wicks doggedly followed the story and put together the forensic trail; the criminal justice system followed up for Deokaran, convicting the gunmen. Five years after her murder on the morning of 23 August 2021 in the south of Johannesburg, the work continues. On 20 July, the National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA’s) Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) confirmed the final forfeiture of six properties, six cars, a trailer and a boat from Hangwani Morgan Maumela, one of the kingpin tenderpreneurs whose companies extracted R400-million in tenders from the Tembisa Hospital – the scheme first identified by Deokaran, who had tried to stop it.“Thank-you. I am praying that she [the head of department] grants approval soon so that we can start [investigating],” Deokaran WhatsApped just over a week before she was murdered.The Gauteng Health Department did not investigate, and it fell to Wicks, the police, the Asset Forfeiture Unit and now the National Treasury, all of whom have shown commitment in completing Deokaran’s work.The pursuit of justice“The review [of Tembisa Hospital’s payments system] by the Specialised Audit Services Unit (SAS) of the National Treasury confirmed the possible large-scale corruption reported by Deokaran,” said NPA spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago.“The SAS established that 14 entities controlled by the Maumela syndicate apparently irregularly or unlawfully benefited from contracts from the Tembisa hospital with a cumulative value of more than R400-million.”Investigations revealed a “multitude” of irregularities and manipulation of processes which led to the asset forfeiture action. Maumela’s swag was provisionally seized in August 2025, and on Monday, the Gauteng high court confirmed it.“The pursuit of justice for the people of South Africa continues, particularly in the fight against corruption. Our people become victims of crime and corruption when they face inadequate healthcare, under-resourced health facilities, medicine shortages and a lack of essential equipment,” said National Director of Public Prosecutions Andy Mothibi.Lambo lifestyleMaumela lived the high life in Sandhurst and Bantry Bay. He had a boat and loved Lamborghinis – he owned four, all of which are now the property of the State, along with a Bentley Continental GT V8, along with the boat and its trailer. “All recovered proceeds will be paid into the Criminal Asset Recovery Account, where it will be ringfenced for utilisation by the Gauteng Department of Health. The Criminal Asset Recovery Committee will ensure that the recovered proceeds are appropriately utilised,” said Chuma Mtengwane, the head of the AFU.In October 2025 the Special Investigating Unit raided Hangwani Morgan Maumela’s Sandhurst house and seized his fleet of luxury cars including three Lamborghinis, each worth several millions rands. (Photo: SIU) One of the Lamborghini vehicles seized from Hangwani Morgan Maumela’s Sandhurst home in October 2025. (Photo: SIU) The AFU is a little-heralded gem in the fight against corruption. While criminal prosecutions of masterminds and tenderpreneurs can drag on as they are highly complex to prosecute, forfeiture takes away the fruits or benefits of crime.Under its previous leader, Ouma Rabaji-Rasethaba, the AFU brought at least R12-billion back to the fiscus through deferred prosecution agreements and asset forfeiture. Mtengwane and her team are continuing the work, as the Maumela asset forfeiture shows.The statement emphasises that the criminal asset recovery committee will ensure the “appropriate” utilisation of the Maumela riches once the cars and property are sold. Apathetic health departmentThis is because the Gauteng Health Department has made only tepid efforts to deal with the corruption that encrusts the department responsible for the health and well-being of 16.1 million people.Deokaran’s supervisor, Madyo, for example, was suspended and then quietly retired with her pension intact. Dozens of officials are implicated in many extraction schemes such as the Tembisa syndicate operation; none has been appropriately disciplined. Reports show that 20 implicated officials have retired or resigned on full pensions without facing any disciplinary proceedings or completed investigations. “Babita’s final internal investigation threatened vast networks of extraction led by a trio of men, some with deep-rooted political ties and the protection that no doubt come with them. She had dutifully gathered documents and built her case. She had described rampant procurement as genocide, and I think she was right. It requires a special kind of psychopath to steal from a hospital, but any mote of morality was overwhelmed by greed. For doing her job, Babita was betrayed,” writes WicksHe adds that a tip-off about her probe must have been passed to “powerful actors”.The home Hangwani Morgan Maumela in Sandhurst during a raid conducted by the SIU in October 2025. (Photo: Felix Dlangamandla) The mastermind hasn’t yet been netted, but on the long road to justice for Deokaran and a South Africa free of corruption, the seizure of the Lambo fleet and the expensive properties makes it a good day to remember a brave woman. DM