SVT Nyheter Skåne has previously reported that regional director Alf Jönsson has revealed that he and Mats Ekstrand were invited to a dinner by Vårdinnovation on 22 August 2019 at the restaurant Kasai in the sky in Malmö.
Two of the four dinner guests, Mats Ekstrand and board professional Bert Nordberg, worked together for several years within the Ericsson Group and both lived in Silicon Valley.
They still have contact and are "spoken to regularly", Ekstrand told the auditing firm Pwc, which was commissioned to investigate suspected irregularities in connection with the procurement.
Talked about the future
At the time of the invitation dinner, Bert Nordberg had invested SEK 2 million in shares in Vårdinnovation and sat on the board since the company was formed the year before.
The future of Vårdexpressen was discussed at the restaurant.
The regional management would soon decide whether the IT tool would be introduced at all health centers.
That was when the big money was to be paid out to Vårdinnovation.
Despite his relationship with Bert Nordberg, Mats Ekstrand did not raise the issue of a dispute until almost six months after the banquet.
- This must be investigated, says Mattias Olsson (S), member of the regional board and second vice chairman of the primary care committee.
Emailed about conflict of interest situation
On 16 January 2020, when SVT started asking questions about the procurement, Mats Ekstrand sent an email to the regional director:
"As you know, me and Bert Nordberg are old colleagues", wrote Ekstrand and continued: "Until now, I have been very little involved in issues concerning the Health Express".
He then concluded by writing: “would be best if future questions about the project and the company in question do not pass my table at all.
Do not want to risk getting into a conflict situation. "
- Mats Ekstrand's conflict of interest situation should reasonably have arisen long before both the dinner and the deal with Vårdinnovation.
Legally, the dispute has always applied, says Mattias Olsson (S), and continues:
- I do not know if this is something for the region to investigate or the law enforcement authorities.
Kept silent about invited dinner
Pwc interviewed Mats Ekstrand on two occasions in the spring of 2020 for a total of two hours and a quarter.
Ekstrand never mentioned that he had been invited to dinner by Vårdinnovations' CEO Damon Tojjar.
SVT has contacted Mats Ekstrand for a comment.
Ekstrand has previously stated to SVT that he had no indications that Bert Nordberg had financial interests in Vårdexpressen neither before the procurement nor at the award.
Ekstrand also stated that he did not know that Nordberg signed a so-called parent company guarantee for Vårdinnovation.
The guarantee was a prerequisite for the newly started Vårdinnovation to participate in the procurement and meant that Nordberg promised to back the company financially.
Mats Ekstrand left Region Skåne this spring.
On Wednesday, regional director Alf Jönsson is expected to present the invitation dinner at the regional board's working committee.
Below you can see the tours around Vårdexpressen summarized in 60 seconds:
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In the video, you get the whole twist around the Care Express - explained in 60 seconds.
Photo: SVT