Whip cracked on officials using public purse

OFFICIALS using the public purse as “pocket money” have been warned by MPs on parliament’s watchdog select committee on public acounts (Scopa) they would crack down hard on corruption and waste.

The Auditor-General’s office estimates that corruption cost government R46-billion in the last year, up from a previous estimate of around R30-billion.

Addressing the media yesterday, committee chair Themba Godi said this included having members of the Hawks and anti-corruption task team attend Scopa meetings since October so that criminal wrongdoing could be referred directly to them.

“Parliament has to ensure that the work of its committees is not just a mere annual ritual but does have an impact on how the executive account,” said Godi.

He said since October the Scopa hearings had focused on fruitless and wasteful and irregular expenditure.

And he said that since the arrangement started, they had identified cases for referral to the Hawks among them cases in the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, one in the Department of Basic Education and potential cases in South African Social Security Agency.

They were also looking at cases that the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) had told the committee they had referred to the Hawks.

He said they would also be looking at the “financial health” of institutions and focusing on government employees doing business with departments.

Godi said that in January they would hold hearings with the anti-corruption task team to establish what is being investigated and how.

Treasury would also be called in to give a briefing on their investigations into state-owned entities Denel, Eskom, Transnet, Prasa, and the SABC.