Scopa takes aim at SAPS corruption
Committee wants lifestyle audits
Parliament’s standing committee on public accounts (Scopa) says it wants lifestyle audits to be conducted on employees of the South African Police Service (SAPS) and employees of the State Information Technology Agency (Sita) as a matter of urgency.
Scopa said it had received information yesterday from Sita‚ that showed corrupt relationships between employees of Sita and service providers.
The committee said it was concerned about the collusion between Sita officials and convicted Boeremag member Andre du Toit‚ which led to Sita officials giving financial and other assistance to Du Toit while he was in prison.
Members of the committee were also concerned that an administrator in a junior position at Sita was able to register companies without disclosing it to Sita and had also done business with the state through those companies.
The committee said it had also been informed that there were Sita employees who had resigned while under investigation.
The committee said they wanted details of those former officials so they could be named and shamed and face the consequences.
The committee is waiting for Sita to report back on the management of these cases by June 30.
Scopa has also requested National Police Commissioner General Khehla Sitole to submit a report on all current investigations‚ including the Forensic Data Analysts (FDA) and Unisys contracts, by the end of the month.
The committee also told the police to expedite all investigations involving SAPS officials.
Scopa has also requested Sitole to tell it why Brigadier Beauty Phahlane‚ the wife of former acting national commissioner Kgomotso Phahlane had not been suspended for her alleged involvement in corrupt activities within the police service.
The Freedom Front Plus said the fact that Sita had been infiltrated was shocking and served as proof of the absolute incompetence of the staff who were responsible for operating the system.
“It is also ludicrous for the police commissioner‚ Khehla Sitole‚ to say the Boeremag infiltrated the system without having any proof to substantiate such a statement.
“It seems to be nothing more than a smokescreen to try and cover up the incompetence at Sita‚” the party said in a statement.
The FF Plus said Sitole must explain to the public how the state knew who had hacked its top-secret IT system but so far no arrests had been made.
‘‘ It is a smokescreen to cover up incompetence