AG says Tshwane finances need intervention
The Auditor General Kimi Makwetu has found that Tshwane’s financial health has regressed from a concerning status to a status that requires intervention.
The Auditor-General South Africa (AGSA) said Tshwane’s financial health has regressed and now needs intervention.
“There has been inadequate monitoring and implementation of audit action plans,” said Auditor-General Kimi Makwetu in the latest report into South African municipalities’ financial health.
“A number of human resource non-compliance findings were raised in relation to appointment processes in the metro.”
The report noted remedial actions to address findings by management must be assessed collectively.
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This would ensure internal control deficiencies identified in the previous year were addressed, it said.
“This could have prevented similar instances of non-compliance being reported in the current year, especially relating to contract management.”
The report found that Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and Nelson Mandela Bay required intervention due to “senior management not implementing adequate control disciplines”.
The AGSA further found that audit committee recommendations were not always implemented in Tshwane.
“The internal audit unit had capacity issues relating to information technology audits,” it said.
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The AG said improvements could be made if leadership at metros clearly defined targets to be achieved in terms of audit outcomes, project delivery and financial health.
This could be achieved by using, among others, audit action plans, integrated development plans, service delivery and budget implementation plans, annual budgets and project plans.
It recommended the Tshwane metro include budget performance planning processes informed by solid analysis and forecast.
It further recommended the implementation of audit plans and quarterly monitoring; adequate record keeping; efficient leadership and stability in key positions; credible in-year report and accountability on all levels with consequences for transgressions.
“Honourable political leadership is always an issue,” economist Dawie Roodt told Rekord.
“Unfortunately, coalitions are a problem because everyone is in charge, but no one is actually in charge.”
“In the end, it is the residents who suffer because politics becomes far more important.”
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“I can’t see how we can get out of this because the Tshwane metro is still a coalition government; so for now, we just have to kick the can down the road until the next elections in 2021,” said Roodt.
The solution is accountable political leadership and appointing people who can do the job and not people appointed due to their loyalty, he said.
“On all levels, not just local, we need to change whom we appoint in these positions; however, we are not there yet,” said Roodt.
Tshwane mayor Stevens Mokgalapa told Rekord the metro has put several mechanisms in place to deal with the problem.
These included overhauling the entire supply chain management department and appointing people with all the correct skills.
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“We have also implemented a supply chain management policy to address system shortcomings such as deviations and the use of consultants and panels.
Mokgalapa said it was essential to implement better consequence management.
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