Question NW2579 to the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services
11 January 2022 - NW2579
Breytenbach, Adv G to ask the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services
With reference to the 35% increase in irregular expenditure to R1,41 billion and 93% increase in fruitless and wasteful expenditure to R1,13 billion in the 2020-21 financial year, what steps does he intend to take to (a) address the sharp increase in irregular and fruitless and wasteful expenditure in his department and (b) hold those employees found to be responsible for incurring the irregular and fruitless and wasteful expenditure accountable?
Reply:
The increase of the fruitless and wasteful expenditure for 2020/21 financial year is R1,13 million (not billion) as indicated in the question. (See Annual Report 2020/21, pg 265 for ease of reference).
- Department has investigated a total of 1 082 cases of irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure out of 1 320 cases reported. The progress translates to 82% of cases investigated.
- Consequence management measures were applied on a total of 136 transactions where officials received varying disciplinary outcomes.
The following table provides a summary of the number of officials disciplined and outcomes:
|
Number of Officials |
Disciplinary outcomes |
|
17 |
Written warnings |
|
15 |
Final written warnings |
|
03 |
Suspensions without Salary |
|
06 |
Verbal warnings |
|
01 |
Corrective counselling |
Total 42
It must be noted that of the 1082 cases investigated a large number of cases did not yield evidence to warrant sanction for irregular, fruitless and wasteful transactions. It is further emphasised that of the 136 transactions some of the 42 sanctioned officials may have been implicated in more than one of the identified transactions.
In addition to the above, the Department further investigated a total of 154 cases identified by the AGSA through a Computer Assisted Audit Techniques (CAATs) of which 30 cases related to the non-disclosure of interest by officials.
The table below provides a summary of the outcomes investigated relating to the above 30 cases of non-disclosure of interest as follows:-
|
Number of cases |
Outcomes/comments |
|
08 |
Officials resigned prior to investigations being conducted |
|
05 |
Officials were disciplined (Verbal, final written warning issued) |
|
02 |
Awaiting disciplinary outcomes |
|
15 |
Officials cannot be directly linked to companies. |
The balance of 124 cases could not be pursued on merit.
Furthermore, the following are cases investigated by the SIU which were referred to the Department for further processing:
-
- Proclamation 10 of 2018: Tenders in KZN;
- Proclamation 20 of 2016: Appointment of Masetloaka Scott Wilson (PTY) LTD (MSW);
- Proclamation 23 of 2020: Personal Protective Equipment;
The officials implicated are undergoing disciplinary processes as a result of such referrals.
END