KPMG to give R40m to anti-graft initiatives
TAKE KPMG’S donations at your own peril, warn whistle-blowers, as the auditing firm moves to cleanse itself from the tainted dealings with the controversial Gupta family.
KPMG is donating R40 million to organisations involved in anti-corruption and educational initiatives. This has been viewed as an attempt to repair the reputational damage it suffered in 2017.
The amount is based on the total fees earned from Gupta-related entities to which KPMG South Africa provided services from 2002.
Preference will be given to initiatives targeted at rural and disadvantaged communities, including projects for women and children, youth and disabled people, the company said.
“This is in line with KPMG’S citizenship focus to unlock societal potential through supporting quality education for all,” said spokesperson Nqubeko Sibiya.
Applications for organisations who wish to benefit from the R40m opened this week and will on close on June 18.
“This commitment was made as acknowledgement of mistakes we have made in the past, and is part of a broader strategy to ensure that we become more actively involved in making a sustainable contribution towards pressing societal challenges facing the country,” said Sibiya.
But Corruption Watch and the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) are sceptical of the move.
Outa chief executive Wayne Duvenage asked: What is the value of R40m spent on civil society when compared with the damage that the country suffered from the KPMG and Gupta business relations?
Duvenage said the confidence that KPMG previously enjoyed had been eroded.
“Going forward, they must make us not doubt their reports,” he said.
David Lewis, executive director of Corruption Watch, said his organisation would not accept a KPMG donation unless the terms and conditions were clear.
Duvenage also warned recipients of KPMG donations to tread carefully and to not put themselves in a precarious predicament.
“They must not feel like they are being bought. The donation will have to be put in good use and for anti-corruption initiatives,” he said.
Duvenage said he hoped that KPMG has learnt an “extremely good lesson” from the reputational damage the company suffered.
“And I hope they are going to change how they do their business. It will also be interesting how they will help the industry change its conduct because KPMG are not alone,” said Duvenage.
KPMG has been dumped by big companies after its dealings with the Guptas were thrust into the spotlight. As auditors, the company did not disclose alleged irregularities in the Guptas’ business dealings.
It is alleged that the Guptas – believed to have close ties with former president Jacob Zuma – were the masterminds of state capture, going as far as appointing members of the cabinet. The Guptas have denied this.
Among the clients that have ditched KPMG are financial services firm Barclays Africa, Sasfin, the retail group Foschini and Wits University.
Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo announced on Thursday that the state capture commission of inquiry, which he will chair, will start its work in August. The hearings are set to be held in Joburg.