EC: Officials grab contracts

[MickeyD]

This is why I was surprised that the national Treasury did not include the Eastern Cape on their list of provinces in dire need of financial assistance. Then again, this is just pure oink, oink, oink....

THREE-QUARTERS of all Eastern Cape government contracts are awarded to companies owned by state officials and their families.

This was revealed in a report tabled by Auditor-General Terence Nombembe at a closed meeting with MPLs yesterday.

“[Nombembe] told us that 74% of government work was secured by officials who are doing business with government,” said ANC legislator Zolile Mrara. “It’s happening across all departments.”

Of this, about two-thirds was being channelled through companies owned by relatives of the officials, said Mrara.

The Daily Dispatch recently reported that the latest audit outcomes showed the province was unable to account properly for more than R5- billion of its expenditure during the last fiscal year – all of it irregular, unauthorised, fruitless and wasteful expenditure. Most of the misspent amount – R4.8-billion – was in the department of education.

Full story here: http://www.dispatch.co.za/news/article/2481

 

[Viva]

This makes me extremely negative

 

[kat06sa]

More of the same.

 

[air]

cadre deployment, who for the most part are not fit for the job and a healthy dose of entitlement and '**** the poor' attitude.

 

[marine1]

Lovely

 

[Hemi300c]

And the worst of it all is zip is going to happen because ALL the ANC, YES I said ALL are corrupt simply because if you were not of the same culture and ethics you wouldn't be part of that F'ing group of thieving bas7ards.

 

[marine1]

And the worst of it all is zip is going to happen because ALL the ANC, YES I said ALL are corrupt simply because if you were not of the same culture and ethics you wouldn't be part of that F'ing group of thieving bas7ards.

Seems the whole country is becoming this way, African way of doing things is to bribe for business.
/Disclaimer: I better just state this is not a race issue, this is an African issue.

 

[Thugscub]

VASELINE MORE VASELINE Bend over taxpayers.

 

[Lightscribe]

But Premier Noxolo Kiviet announced in a debate later yesterday that a policy to break the link between public office and government business would soon be in place.

“The policy is already in its final stages. One will have to make a decision on whether to serve the public or become a businessperson,” Kiviet told the legislature yesterday.

Mmm so the sale of fake IDs are going to soar in EC...

“We cannot allow that. We have oversight institutions here at the legislature. They must tighten the screws next year and deal with this.

The head of both the special investigating unit and the asset forfeiture unit said on Wednesday the country could lose as much as 20% of its total procurement budget to graft annually, in response to a question about the extent of government corruption in South Africa.

"I think that may not be an unrealistic estimate," Willie Hofmeyr told Parliament's justice committee, adding that it translated to between R25bn and R30bn.

...

"Local government is where the problems are the worst and where oversight mechanisms are the least."

...

Hofmeyr said the fight against corruption was hindered by a shortage of investigators and the low rate of criminal convictions of officials found with their fingers in the till.

"We should have 7 000 people whose job it is to investigate corruption and I think we have 700.

...

He said the SIU obtained two legal opinions which confirmed that provided by Eskom, upsetting a 7-year-old practice that had seen it accepted remuneration from a range of state entities.

"We got our own legal opinion at the end of June and then a second opinion that confirmed it and accepted we have got a problem," he said.

"Basically, we are not allowed to charge departments for our services. Everybody was a bit blind-sided by this issue."

Hofmeyr mentioned the matter in a briefing on the SIU's annual report.

He said the unit had not wanted to make it public until it was confident of finding both long and short term solutions because it did not want its staff to fear for their jobs, he said.

An amendment to the SIU Act that would make such payments legitimate is in the pipeline, Hofmeyr said. At present, the legislation is silent on the issue.

“This is serious misconduct.”

Mmmm so a promotion for the guilty is in order, as usual...

But Mahlubandile Qwase, a deputy director-general in the premier’s office, said the government would have to tread carefully so as not to violate the constitutional right of individuals to do business.

“That is why we have hired a company to look at gaps in the current legislation which can be tightened .”

Yep, promotions and a chance to offer family and friends another job opportunity, looking at gaps in the constitution, for a good few years, before the usual decision is taken, to do nothing.