ALLEGATIONS of nepotism, duplication of duties and flouting of procedures to appoint service providers have rocked the Housing Development Agency.
The agency's chief executive, Taffy Adler, is alleged to have hired his sister-in-law Josie Adler and a close friend, Brad Arden, to work with him at the HDA.
Josie and Arden are currently employed in the programmes and projects division.
The agency is responsible to secure vacant land for the Department of Human Settlements to build houses for the community and reports directly to Minister Tokyo Sexwale.
The agency's spokeswoman Kate Shand confirmed yesterday that Josie and Arden were indeed consulting for the agency.
She admitted that Josie was Taffy Adler's sister-in-law but denied that Arden and Adler were close friends.
"Josie Adler is Mr Adler's sister-in-law (but) Mr Adler only has a professional relationship with Brad Arden," Shand said in an e-mail.
She, however, denied that Josie Adler's relationship to the chief executive had influenced her appointment.
Experience, she said, gave her the nod.
"Josie Adler has a 40-year reputation in her field and she was appointed - independent of her relationship with Mr Adler - by an HDA general manager to undertake neighbourhood development work," Shand said.
Adler is also accused of contracting Sally Blaine to do human resource-related work.
This is despite the HDA having a fully-fledged HR department that performs the same functions.
Sowetan understands that employees in the HR department have complained about Blaine's appointment.
Blaine, who is stationed in the chief executive's office, received an hourly payment of R798 over 31 months.
Regarding Blaine's contract to the HR department, Shand said: "Sally Blaine was initially appointed to provide HR support as the HDA did not have an HR manager at the time.
"(She) currently provides strategic support to the HDA and only has a limited HR role where her prior knowledge of the organisation is brought to bear.
"We confirm the hourly rate of R789 including VAT."
According to the report, which studied irregular expenditure in the agency between March and September this year, Arden, Adler and Blaine were paid R418,608; R249,600 and R870,846 respectively
- Sowetan
The agency's chief executive, Taffy Adler, is alleged to have hired his sister-in-law Josie Adler and a close friend, Brad Arden, to work with him at the HDA.
Josie and Arden are currently employed in the programmes and projects division.
The agency is responsible to secure vacant land for the Department of Human Settlements to build houses for the community and reports directly to Minister Tokyo Sexwale.
The agency's spokeswoman Kate Shand confirmed yesterday that Josie and Arden were indeed consulting for the agency.
She admitted that Josie was Taffy Adler's sister-in-law but denied that Arden and Adler were close friends.
"Josie Adler is Mr Adler's sister-in-law (but) Mr Adler only has a professional relationship with Brad Arden," Shand said in an e-mail.
She, however, denied that Josie Adler's relationship to the chief executive had influenced her appointment.
Experience, she said, gave her the nod.
"Josie Adler has a 40-year reputation in her field and she was appointed - independent of her relationship with Mr Adler - by an HDA general manager to undertake neighbourhood development work," Shand said.
Adler is also accused of contracting Sally Blaine to do human resource-related work.
This is despite the HDA having a fully-fledged HR department that performs the same functions.
Sowetan understands that employees in the HR department have complained about Blaine's appointment.
Blaine, who is stationed in the chief executive's office, received an hourly payment of R798 over 31 months.
Regarding Blaine's contract to the HR department, Shand said: "Sally Blaine was initially appointed to provide HR support as the HDA did not have an HR manager at the time.
"(She) currently provides strategic support to the HDA and only has a limited HR role where her prior knowledge of the organisation is brought to bear.
"We confirm the hourly rate of R789 including VAT."
According to the report, which studied irregular expenditure in the agency between March and September this year, Arden, Adler and Blaine were paid R418,608; R249,600 and R870,846 respectively
- Sowetan
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