Scopa warns departments taking A-G to court

The Standing Committee on Public Accounts has warned government departments and entities that South Africa was not a mafia state. Auditor-General Kimi Makwetu on Wednesday told Scopa of a growing trend by departments and provinces threatening him with legal action on his findings. One department has already taken him to court and another municipality has interdicted his findings. This elicited anger from Scopa members who questioned the motive of departments in blocking the findings of the auditor-general. Makwetu said they had seen the pushback trend in recent times. People were resisting because his office was digging where officials did not want them to, he said. The auditors have no limit in looking at the books of departments and entities, said Makwetu. “We are not going to run away when we audit what that transaction was about.

“Yes, they will resist because these audits scratch where it matters. When they resist they want a different audit outcome or when they were caught off guard,” he told MPs. The resistance came in areas of supply chain management where there was a lot of irregular expenditure. Irregular expenditure for the 2015/16 financial year was R45 billion for departments and state-owned entities. “The pushbacks come from people who know there could be action taken against them,” he said. Scopa chairman Themba Godi said they would not tolerate the resistance or pushback by departments. South Africa was not a mafia state and resistance by departments on the audit findings would not be tolerated, he said.“We are not running a mafia state. You cannot have a crooked fellow running a department in a rural province thinking they know better,” said Godi.

He said this level of resistance by departments and entities was two steps backward. Godi said they would not allow officials to dictate to Parliament and the auditor-general how they wanted to account for the billions they spend. Scopa has decided to look at irregular expenditure because billions of rand were deviated every year in emergencies, he said. ANC MP Vincent Smith said the auditor-general had to stick to his guns against departments resisting the audit findings. “Where we stand currently there must be total and relentless onslaught on corruption,” said Smith. DA MP David Ross said most of the non-compliance with the Public Finance Management Act was in supply chain management. He called on Scopa to fight corruption, and that accounting officers be held accountable for non-compliance with tender regulations. Ross said most of the non-compliance with tender regulations was deliberate.

Nyami Booi of the ANC also warned against this resistance by departments to agree to the findings of the auditor-general. “It is clear there is non co-operation by officials to enable us to do our work. That resistance we have been feeling auditor-general,” he said. He agreed with his colleague from the ANC, Smith, that there was corruption in departments and entities. Booi said there were a lot of officials who resisted the findings of the auditor-general.