The Pansy Tlakula - Public Protector Probe

Tlakula defiance a concern: CDP

The Christian Democratic Party expressed concern on Tuesday over Independent Electoral Commission chairwoman Pansy Tlakula's refusal to resign.

This was after Public Protector Thuli Madonsela found on Monday that Tlakula had played a "grossly irregular" role in procuring the Riverside Office Park building in Centurion for the IEC's head office.

"If we want to establish a proper democracy, the credibility of the IEC needs to be beyond reproach," CDP leader Theunis Botha said in a statement on Tuesday.

"Democracy requires transparency and accountability, which appears to be lacking in Tlakula's approach."

Madonsela recommended on Monday that Parliament consider taking action against Tlakula.

Madonsela found improper conduct and maladministration on Tlakula's part, and a conflict of interest involving a company co-director, with whom she was accused of being romantically involved.

"The Speaker of Parliament... [should] consider whether action should be taken against advocate Tlakula for her role in the procurement... in light of the undisclosed and unmanaged conflict of interest and her contravention of the procurement laws and prescripts," Madonsela said in her report.

Botha said he was disappointed by the IEC's response to irregularities the CDP had reported to the electoral commission.

"Especially for the IEC's lack of response in investigating irregularities such as the ANC combining food parcels paid for by the taxpayers with electioneering.

"Concerns will now only increase with the bad example set by Tlakula, and we urge her to do the right thing," he said.

Botha said Tlakula's position did not only require capable management, but also the "highest level of integrity, transparency and independence".


Source : Sapa /od/hdw/ks/jk
Date : 27 Aug 2013 16:22
 
Don't Judge Tlakula yet: ANC

Political parties in Parliament must stop commenting on IEC chairwoman Pansy Tlakula, who was found guilty of improper conduct and maladministration by the public protector, ANC chief whip Stone Sizane said on Wednesday.

"It makes a mockery of parliamentary processes and undermines the institutional role," he said in a statement.

"Parliament recommends the appointment of the Independent Electoral Commission chairpersons. It is therefore irresponsible for parliamentary parties to make public judgements... on a matter that they would still deliberate on [in parliamentary committees] and take a decision [as part of National Assembly]."

Sizane said political parties should not "prejudge" the matter.

Public Protector Thuli Madonsela on Monday recommended that National Assembly Speaker Max Sisulu consider taking action against Tlakula after it was found she had played a "grossly irregular" role in the procurement of the Riverside Office Park building in Centurion for the IEC's headquarters.

Madonsela's report also revealed there was a conflict of interest between Tlakula and a company co-director, with whom she was accused of being romantically involved.

The co-director, Thaba Mufamadi, is Parliament's finance portfolio committee chairman. He also owns a 20 percent stake in Abland, which was awarded the contract to lease the office park premises.

"In line with parliamentary procedure on matters such as this, the speaker would refer the report... to the relevant parliamentary structure, which will apply its mind and then make recommendations for consideration by the House," said Sizane.

"The House is the final arbiter on this matter... We call upon all parliamentary political parties to respect this process."


Source : Sapa /ma/fg/jje/jk
Date : 28 Aug 2013 11:14
 
Tlakula waiting for court outcome

IEC chairwoman Pansy Tlakula believed Public Protector Thuli Madonsela "erred" in her finding about the procurement of the electoral commission's headquarters in Centurion.

"I strongly believe she has erred in some respects," Tlakula told The New Age's breakfast briefing in Johannesburg on Thursday.

"I have challenged those findings in a court of law and am waiting for the outcome."

She said Madonsela's finding had "in some respects" affected the IEC, but not its work.

"I hope we have put this behind us...Lets wait for the court to rule on that matter."

She declined to answer further questions about it.

Last year, Madonsela found Tlakula's role in concluding a R320 million lease contract for a new head office for the Independent Electoral Commission was improper and constituted maladministration.

In a 55-page response to the finding, Tlakula claimed that Madonsela did not have the power to investigate the allegations of maladministration, or to refer the matter to the Speaker of the National Assembly, as she had, or to the president.

At the time, Tlakula said neither the legislature nor the president had any authority to deal with the conduct of the chief electoral commissioner, which was the position she held at the time the contract was signed.


Source : Sapa /mar/fg/jje
Date : 30 Jan 2014 09:01
 
Ah nice. Corruption is okay because I don't answer to anyone. Good to know.
 
LEASE REPORT 'DOES NOT CALL ME CORRUPT': TLAKULA

A National Treasury report into the procurement process for the Electoral Commission of SA's (IEC) head office does not accuse chairwoman Pansy Tlakula of corruption, she said on Wednesday.

"Contrary to media reports, the report does not make a finding of corruption or accrual of financial gain against me or any official of the commission," she said in a statement.

The report of the forensic investigation, released on Tuesday, was done by auditors PriceWaterhouseCoopers on behalf of the Treasury on the procurement of the IEC's Riverside Office Park building in Centurion, Pretoria.

The report indicated that the procurement process was not fair, transparent, or cost-effective. It also found that Tlakula did not give guidance or formally inform various people what was expected of them in the process.

Tlakula said: "l reiterate that I have not been involved or found guilty of any criminal or corrupt activity. Thus, any reporting to that effect is without foundation and presumably calculated to impugn my integrity."

She did not want to respond to the report in full until Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, who is the custodian of the report, had addressed issues that she had raised with him relating to the investigation.

The IEC acknowledged and disclosed concerns about non-compliance with procurement prescripts of its own volition in its financial statements for 2010/2011, before any of the probes into the process, she said.

"Where we made mistakes during this process, we disclosed and owned up to them.

"We have learned from those mistakes."

Tlakula said the IEC had already tightened up its procurement processes to ensure full compliance with regulations.

Furthermore, she was satisfied the non-compliance was unintentional and did not set out to secure improper benefit for anyone involved.

The Treasury report followed a recommendation from Public Protector Thuli Madonsela in her own report into the matter, released in August 2013.

Madonsela found Tlakula had played a "grossly irregular" role in procuring the premises.

The complaint against Tlakula to Madonsela was lodged by United Democratic Movement leader Bantu Holomisa. Tlakula was CEO at the time the complaint was lodged.

Tlakula has blasted Madonsela's report, which she said contained "factual errors".

On Wednesday she said her review application seeking to have Madonsela's report reviewed and aspects of it set aside was still pending.

"I put my faith in the legal system and I believe that my name will be cleared at the end of this drawn out process."

She said the timing of the Treasury report release was unfortunate because the IEC preparations for the general elections were at a critical stage.


Source : Sapa /mjs/jk
Date : 19 Mar 2014 09:43
 
Tlakula 'spent R1m on pot plant holders'

Cape Town - A PricewaterhouseCoopers’ (PwC) investigation into the Independent Electoral Commission’s multi-million-rand lease agreement has found that an “unreasonable” R1m was spent on 400 steel pot plant containers while almost R900 000 was spent on furniture for Pansy Tlakula’s office.

According to the Sunday Independent, Tlakula, the head of the IEC, authorised a move for the offices and spent millions of rands decorating them.

PwC apparently reported that items worth about R60m were reviewed in order to determine whether they were what would normally be expected for furnishing the offices of a state organisation, reported the newspaper.

In addition to the pot plant container splurge, the probe found that the IEC spent R483 000 on gym equipment. Tlakula’s office, boardroom and waiting area got a R899 000 makeover. This included 23 diamond padded five-star base chairs for her office and boardroom that cost the taxpayer more than R110 000, R28 000 for a desk and R48 000 for a TV display among other purchases.

The PwC probe was commissioned by Treasury after public protector Thuli Madonsela found Tlakula’s conduct highly irregular, improper and constituting maladministration in respect of the procurement of the IEC's Riverside Office Park building in Centurion, Pretoria.

The report indicated that the procurement process was not fair, transparent, or cost-effective. It also found that Tlakula did not give guidance or formally inform various people what was expected of them in the process.

Madonsela found Tlakula had played a "grossly irregular" role in procuring the premises.
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Link.
 
A good honest person for the right job.

I feel safe that there will be no fraud in the elections now.

TIA and corruption and thievery is the national sport. First team is anc.
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Garyvdh said:
The rot is everywhere....
Click to expand...

Given the state of all the BS that is happening in SA, your profile picture is very fitting. It always adds that extra oomph when you post all these sad things.
 
Were they not accused a few months ago of using apartheid systems to do these audits?

Must be apartheid again.
 
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