The Democratic Alliance (DA) is calling for urgent accountability after irregular expenditure within the Gauteng Department of Social Development surged to over R1.3 billion, severely affecting welfare services to the province’s most vulnerable citizens.

An additional R210 million in irregular expenditure was incurred between April and December 2024, despite repeated warnings from the Auditor-General. No investigations have been initiated, and officials and politicians continue to act with impunity.

“Despite the repeated warnings of the Auditor-General, no investigations have been launched into the Department’s financial mismanagement, nor has any consequence management been implemented. Officials and politicians act with impunity, as if the law does not apply to them,” said Alan Fuchs, DA Gauteng Member of the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA).

The DA has accused Premier Panyaza Lesufi and Social Development MEC Faith Mazibuko of failing to provide proper oversight and protecting politically connected individuals by withholding forensic reports that could expose widespread corruption.

Meanwhile, the Portfolio Committee on Social Development in March launched a three-day oversight visit to Gauteng to investigate the NPO funding crisis. Their mission comes in response to media reports and public outcry over the department’s budget cuts, particularly in light of ongoing national fiscal constraints that have filtered down to provincial departments.

Committee Chairperson Bridget Masango emphasised that any issue affecting the poor and vulnerable “will always get our utmost attention.”

The committee visited the Ikusasa Lethu Youth and Elderly Project in Soweto, where they found a positive working relationship between the department and some NPOs.

“The presentation by the department to the committee showed that 95% of NPOs in Gauteng have already been duly funded. And we have been given an undertaking that by March 31, 2025, those that qualify but have not yet received their funding would have received their funding,” said Masango.

Mazibuko added that all funded NPOs will soon participate in a public signing ceremony to enhance transparency, with funding details to be published publicly.

One of the major challenges revealed during the oversight visit is the absence of a universal municipal bylaw to regulate the legal status and operations of NPOs. This regulatory gap makes it difficult for the Department to ensure compliance and has led to costly administrative burdens.

“We are to commit a huge portion of our budget to pay for the costly compliance fees to ensure that NPOs are compliant with a list of stringent municipal bylaws regarding building regulations, requirements, and legal status of NPOs,”said Onkemetse Kabasia, Deputy Director-General, Gauteng Department of Social Development. 

Committee members agreed that these laws need to be streamlined. Tshilidzi Munyai noted that NPOs “can’t be subjected to stringent bylaws that are not universal and that the department can’t afford.”

Masango said that there was a need for a reassessment of welfare legislation to address such anomalies and ensure smooth service delivery to communities in need.

The mismanagement has directly affected Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs), many of which have had to shut down due to non-payment, leaving children, the elderly, and people with disabilities without essential care. The situation has raised disturbing parallels to the Life Esidimeni tragedy, said the DA. 

A motion for an inquiry into the department’s failures was tabled by DA MPL Refiloe Nt’sekhe, but debate has been stalled, a move the DA believes is aimed at shielding cadres from accountability.

The DA maintains that under a DA-led Gauteng Government, oversight would be strengthened, legislation enforced, and corruption tackled head-on by implementing Auditor-General recommendations.

“Under a DA-led Gauteng Provincial Government, there would be strong oversight over Departments, legislation would be adhered to, corruption tackled, and Auditor-General’s recommendations followed,” said Fuchs

The DA insists that Gauteng deserves ethical leadership that acts in the best interests of its people, especially the vulnerable.

hope.ntanzi@iol.co.za 

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