End of the road for Mahumapelo
North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo is on his way out due to his poor governance, not just allegations of corruption. It is a matter of when he goes, not if, despite the ANC factions muddying the waters.
North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo is on his way out due to his track record of poor governance, not just allegations of corruption and maladministration. It is now a matter of when, not if, despite the factional politics of the ANC muddying the waters of the premier’s removal.
Flailing electoral fortunes, protests and one department placed under the control of national government — undoubtedly with many more departments, including the provincial treasury to potentially follow — mean the writing is on the wall for Mahumapelo and his executive.
There cannot be another solution to the impasse, given two critical factors: the ANC’s electoral performance and Mahumapelo’s governance track record, outlined starkly in auditor-general reports over the past four years.
The EFF snatched a ward from the ANC in a by-election last week. The ANC had won the ward in 2016 with 51% of the vote. In Wednesday’s byelection, the EFF won the ward with 48% of the vote.
Last week, the Cabinet took a decision on ironing out governance issues in the province. It announced on Thursday it was invoking section 100 (1)(b) of the Constitution to tackle the challenges in the health sector. This means it has effectively placed the health department under administration.
A delegation of ministers is set to descend on the province in the coming weeks to evaluate other departments and the situation on the ground.
Business Day understands that once this happens, it is likely many more of the province’s 13 departments could be placed under administration.
The ministers will examine whether the situation in the North West is heading for a similar crisis as Limpopo had seen back in 2011, when the provincial treasury essentially collapsed. Available evidence shows that North West is on the same course.
In the 2016-17 provincial audit outcomes, auditor-general Kimi Makwetu’s report indicated that state spending without ensuring value for money was of “particular concern” in the province. Additionally, overall 91% of the auditees in the province had material findings on their performance reports.
“Most auditees [91%] still had findings on compliance with legislation, specifically in the areas of irregular expenditure and non-adherence to procurement and contract management prescripts, which also resulted in an increase in the irregular expenditure incurred from R3bn in 2015-16 to R3.6bn in 2016-17,” the auditor-general’s report said.
“The financial health of most public entities in the province remains the biggest concern. Most entities continued to incur deficits every year, while the total current liabilities exceeded the total current assets at seven entities [78%].
“In addition, litigation and claims against health in excess of R1.2bn highlight the department’s and province’s financial vulnerability should these claims be successful,” the report added. “The province’s downward spiral will continue until such time as the pillars of accountability and good governance are put in place.”
In addition, the report said while Mahumapelo’s office should set an example for good governance and accountability, it appeared not to do so.
“The slow response by management to address root causes and the lack of consequence management for continued transgressions and poor performance should have been the priority of the provincial executive leadership, as highlighted in the previous year’s auditor-general report.
“Contrary to this and irrespective of the continued reinforcement of our messages, the overall audit outcomes of North West regressed over the past four years with only 32% of the auditees obtaining accountability, consequence management and action by the provincial executive leadership in addressing root causes, are the cornerstones to improving audit outcomes.”
The ANC leadership meeting this week will have to decide whether to convene a special national executive committee meeting or wait for the ordinary national executive committee meeting at the end of May to announce its next steps regarding Mahumapelo’s future and that of his executive in the province.