Scopa calls for talks on AG powers
It created fertile ground for people to act with impunity.
PARLIAMENT’S finance watchdog, the standing committee on public accounts (Scopa), has called for more discussions over plans to give the auditor-aeneral more powers.
The proposal has been endorsed by the standing committee on the auditor-general, but Scopa said more discussions on the matter were needed.
Scopa chairman Themba Godi said yesterday different countries use different systems to determine how the AG conducts his business.
In France the auditor-general has investigative powers, and in South Africa he can only make recommendations to departments and entities that are audited.
Godi said they would have to look at areas where amendments to the law were envisaged.
“If you look at the French system they are different to what we inherited from the British. It’s an issue that is raised by the standing committee on the auditor-general and we will engage with it,” he said.
Parties in Parliament and the auditor-general have been concerned about lack of action on irregular expenditure. There were complaints that although recommendations are made, little further progress is made in these cases.
In his report on the audit outcomes of departments last year, the auditor-general, Kimi Makwetu, found that irregular expenditure had increased significantly over the last few years.
It went up from R23 billion in the 2013/14 financial year to R26bn in 2014/15 and then ballooned to R46bn in the last financial year.
This raised alarm bells in Parliament – and calls were made for action to be taken against people involved in irregular expenditure.
Godi said the issue of extending the powers of the auditor-general would have to be discussed with the relevant committees of Parliament.
In his presentation to the standing committee on the auditor-general last Friday Makwetu said if there was irregular expenditure, where documents had not even been submitted by departments, there had to be an investigation.
He said a probe should be triggered in instances where a department or entity received a disclaimer.
A disclaimer is when the books are so bad that the AG is unable to express an opinion on the department or entity concerned.
It is in these areas where there are no documents supplied to back up expenditure and even invoices for goods and services purchased.
The Public Finance Management Act and National Treasury regulations state that there must be sound reasons for departments to deviate from procurement processes.
Makwetu said if there were no reasons, it created fertile ground for people to act with impunity.
Makwetu said what they wanted was that within a specified period, possibly 30 days after signing the audit report, that report should be referred to law enforcement agencies to act in instances of corruption.