Some members of a team of “specialists” tasked with helping ailing municipalities achieve clean audits have been found to have “little or no proven experience” themselves.
This was established by a forensic investigation into operations at the Eastern Cape department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta).
The investigation’s report labelled the department’s Operation Clean Audit (OCA) unit as a “channel for appointing people with little or no proven expertise or required experience”.
The team led by Advocate Vusumzi Msiwa probed various allegations after MEC Fikile Xasa sanctioned it amid employee unrest at head office.
Nehawu-aligned employees last year handed Xasa a memorandum, complaining about allegations of nepotism, financial mismanagement, sex-for-jobs and operations at the OCA unit.
Xasa sanctioned an investigation and also suspended his then administration head Stanley Khanyile.
The terms of reference included looking into whether there was any abuse of the OCA, or whether “specialists” were taken in “as a guise of securing them permanent appointment in senior management posts”.
According to the findings, allegations by Nehawu that the unit was used as “a waiting room for (Khanyile’s) favourites, who later got absorbed into full-time employment, whether they qualify or not”, were justified.
The unit was formed in 2009 to target 23 ailing municipalities which had received dismal audit outcomes. They were given a budget of R30-million in 2010-11 for operations. Their term was extended in 2014 to June next year, without the necessary budget, a move described by Xasa as “putting a strain” on his department.
But Khanyile, who has since moved to the social development department, this week denied the OCA was abused or used as a “waiting room” for his cronies.
The OCA was supposedly a team of “professionals” specialising in financial management, internal auditing, supply chain, infrastructure and contract management, and human resources. The Msiwa team however found some lacked those skills.
“The manner in which appointments were made is of great concern, as some of the so-called experts either did not have the required experience or seniority to be considered specialists.”
The report said an examination of the 23 OCA employees’ files revealed “numerous anomalies”, including missing documents.
The team recommended a thorough evaluation of the programme and that an audit of contracts, qualifications, experience verification and reference checks be carried out.
Nehawu chair at Cogta Lennox Maho said the report confirmed their longstanding suspicions about the OCA. — asandan@dispatch.co.za
Specialists helping municipalities no such thing
This was established by a forensic investigation into operations at the Eastern Cape department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta).
The investigation’s report labelled the department’s Operation Clean Audit (OCA) unit as a “channel for appointing people with little or no proven expertise or required experience”.
The team led by Advocate Vusumzi Msiwa probed various allegations after MEC Fikile Xasa sanctioned it amid employee unrest at head office.
Nehawu-aligned employees last year handed Xasa a memorandum, complaining about allegations of nepotism, financial mismanagement, sex-for-jobs and operations at the OCA unit.
Xasa sanctioned an investigation and also suspended his then administration head Stanley Khanyile.
The terms of reference included looking into whether there was any abuse of the OCA, or whether “specialists” were taken in “as a guise of securing them permanent appointment in senior management posts”.
According to the findings, allegations by Nehawu that the unit was used as “a waiting room for (Khanyile’s) favourites, who later got absorbed into full-time employment, whether they qualify or not”, were justified.
The unit was formed in 2009 to target 23 ailing municipalities which had received dismal audit outcomes. They were given a budget of R30-million in 2010-11 for operations. Their term was extended in 2014 to June next year, without the necessary budget, a move described by Xasa as “putting a strain” on his department.
But Khanyile, who has since moved to the social development department, this week denied the OCA was abused or used as a “waiting room” for his cronies.
The OCA was supposedly a team of “professionals” specialising in financial management, internal auditing, supply chain, infrastructure and contract management, and human resources. The Msiwa team however found some lacked those skills.
“The manner in which appointments were made is of great concern, as some of the so-called experts either did not have the required experience or seniority to be considered specialists.”
The report said an examination of the 23 OCA employees’ files revealed “numerous anomalies”, including missing documents.
The team recommended a thorough evaluation of the programme and that an audit of contracts, qualifications, experience verification and reference checks be carried out.
Nehawu chair at Cogta Lennox Maho said the report confirmed their longstanding suspicions about the OCA. — asandan@dispatch.co.za
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