Pravin lifts lid on slackers
MORE than half the 232 state-owned entities and companies that were required to submit quarterly reports on procurement to the Treasury failed to do so at the end of the first quarter of the current fiscal year, Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan has revealed.
Those that did not comply included entities that have been plagued by corruption and procurement irregularities, such as the Passenger Rail Agency of SA as well as government departments such as arts and culture, correctional services, defence, energy, home affairs, international relations and co-operation, public service and administration, telecommunications and postal services, and most of the water boards.
The level of noncompliance was 57% or 133 departments, entities and companies, Gordhan’s reply to a question by DA finance spokesman David Maynier indicated.
State-owned enterprises that had not complied included financially troubled South African Airways and South African Express, the SABC, the Central Energy Fund, Land Bank, Denel, Eskom, Transnet, Telkom and the South African Post Office.
Maynier said it was evident that the Treasury had a major “compliance problem” when it came to reports on procurement.
“This prevents scrutiny and oversight of procurement by Treasury and ultimately opens up space for corruption,” he said.
However, Treasury spokeswoman Yolisa Tyantsi said Treasury’s interest in gathering procurement reports was not to act as an enforcement agent, but to get an overview of spending trends, identify problems and understand the implications of the trends for the fiscus as a whole.
Tyantsi said it was the accounting officers of departments that had to ensure compliance and it was the role of the auditor-general to pick up cases of noncompliance. Parliamentary portfolio committees also had an oversight role. — BDLive