Corruption report held back

THERE has been yet another delay in the release of the full text of the controversial Manase forensic report, and the release date would only be announced “in a few days’ time”.

DURBAN — There has been yet another delay in the release of the full text of the controversial Manase forensic report, with KwaZulu-Natal co-operative governance MEC Nomusa Dube saying yesterday the release date would only be announced “in a few days’ time”.

The report by the accounting firm Manase and Associates was commissioned by the provincial co-operative governance department after the auditorgeneral’s report of 2010-11 and subsequent allegations of widespread maladministration, corruption and fraud at the eThekwini municipality. Ms Dube’s announcement followed expectations that the report would be released during the council sitting on Wednesday.

Last week, the Democratic Alliance applied under the Promotion of Access to Information Act to have the report released in full. The party gave city manager Sbu Sithole 31 days to make the report available or say why it could not be released. The party plans to take the municipality to court if it is not released.

The full report is 370 pages long and is said to implicate at least 11 eThekwini municipal councillors, national and provincial politicians, their families and prominent business people in corruption practices amounting to billions of rand.

Early last year, Ms Dube released an 18-page summary of the document, which implicated only a few officials.

The municipality has maintained that it cannot release the report until those named in it have an opportunity to answer to the allegations.

The report’s release seemed likely on Wednesday when the provincial co-operative governance department informed the media that “MEC Dube (is) to make important announcement on Manase Report, KwaZuluNatal service delivery and AntiCorruption index”.

But at the briefing yesterday, Ms Dube only announced that the date for the release of the report would be made known in a few days. She went on to talk about her department’s interventions in beleaguered municipalities in the province.

The African National Congress provincial executive called this week for the municipality to release the report.

Cogie Pather, the head of housing, has left the municipality in the post-report fallout. Former city manager Michael Sutcliffe is suing the municipality in a dispute emanating from this report. Mr Sutcliffe maintains the report was aimed at soiling the reputation of current and former city officials.