Two officials, a Tembisa Hospital employee and a Hawks sergeant, appeared briefly in the Pretoria Magistrate's’Court on Monday, facing corruption charges linked to an alleged R100 000 bribe.
The duo were identified as Zacharia Chisele, 53, a hospital official, and Sergeant Papi Tsie, 41, from the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI).
According to the South African Police Service, the arrests followed a covert operation linked to an ongoing corruption investigation at the hospital.
SAPS stated, “On Sunday, November 23, 2025, the Hawks member and the Tembisa Hospital official met with the complainant, the investigator in the case, and handed over R100 000 cash as gratification. An operation authorised by the Director of Public Prosecutions was subsequently executed by the DPCI’s Serious Corruption Investigation unit, leading to the arrest of both the sergeant and the Tembisa Hospital official.”
The DA’s Gauteng Shadow MEC for Health, Jack Bloom, lauded the swift law-enforcement action, saying the attempted bribery “shows the high stakes involved.”
Bloom added: “The Democratic Alliance in Gauteng commends the swift action of the Hawks in apprehending a Tembisa Hospital official who attempted to bribe a police sergeant with R100 000 to avoid prosecution in the investigation into corrupt tenders worth R2.3 billion. This shows that the rot in Tembisa Hospital continues, and people are desperate to cover their tracks.
“Those implicated need to be rigorously interrogated so we know who instigated and scored the most from the wholesale looting. This will assist in recovering as much money as possible through asset forfeiture.”
In court, the matter was postponed to December 2, 2025 for bail investigations and a bail application.
anita.nkonki@inl.co.za
Saturday Star