Gauteng-based medical samples courier company Shared Economy Affiliates is engaged in a battle with the National Health Laboratories Services (NHLS) over the abrupt termination of its contract.
Shared Economy Affiliates signed a contract with the NHLS worth more than R98-million in January 2022, to collect medical specimens from nine public hospitals in Gauteng, and four medical facilities in the Western Cape.
The NHLS is a national public entity established to provide quality, affordable and sustainable health laboratory services, training and research.
Shared Economy Affiliates’ director, Vhatuka Mbelengwa, told Sunday World his team received a hostile reception and no proper induction had been done by the NHLS since the awarding of the contract.
“From day one, we arrived at a difficult and hostile environment. There wasn’t sharing of information, and we were also given false information. There was no proper induction in Gauteng.
“We started working and we also pointed out that there was a clause in the contract that the NHLS will incur the costs of changes in terms of fuel costs and others.”
He said he had tried since 2022 to meet NHLS area managers to no avail. Mbelengwa accused some of the area managers of delaying to pay their invoices. This resulted in the company sending letters of demand to force the NHLS to pay up.
Mbelengwa said the company was owed more than R300 000 following the “abrupt” termination of its contract in August.
Sunday World has seen emails Mbelengwa sent to the NHLS expressing his frustrations over unpaid invoices, ignored correspondences and alleged sabotage of its operations.
Mbelengwa claimed their delivery routes had been substantially reduced resulting in the company billing less than R300 000 a month and that another company had been allowed to service routes that form part of their contract.
“We are tired of how the contractual obligations and due process are always overlooked. We have also heard that those routes were taken back because we stated a lack of capacity. This is a lie,” Mbelengwa wrote to the NHLS.
Mbelengwa said his staff of more than 60 people were now without jobs due to the alleged sabotage.
The National Health Laboratory Service spokesperson Mzimasa Gcukumana said that his organisation had entered into a courier medical specimen agreement with Shared Economy Affiliates.
“Shared Economy Affiliates did not fulfil their contractual obligations regarding to service delivery. The company was given an opportunity to remedy the breach in accordance with the clauses outlined in the agreement, they failed to address the breach, which led the NHLS to terminate the agreement. The NHLS responded to the letters of demand regarding the payment of invoices and has fully honoured and settled the outstanding amounts. Therefore, the NHLS does not owe Shared Economy Affiliates any monies,” said Gcukumana.
