KZN departments to appear before Scopa over damning audit findings

Five KwaZulu-Natal provincial government departments will this week appear before the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) to account for their progress in the implementation of resolutions adopted by the committee late last year following adverse findings by the Auditor-General (AG). The five departments — Public Works, Community Safety and Liaison, Transport, Education and Health — are among those repeatedly flagged in recent audit outcomes for financial mismanagement, weak internal controls , and failures to comply with supply chain management regulations. The AG’s latest report painted a bleak picture of governance in the province, highlighting persistent unauthorised, irregular and fruitless expenditure, alongside a lack of consequences for officials implicated in wrongdoing.

Scopa’s resolutions, adopted in response to the AG’s report, required departments to submit detailed implementation plans, strengthen oversight mechanisms , and institute disciplinary processes where necessary. On Tuesday, Scopa will hear presentations from the provincial public works department, community safety and liaison department, and the department of transport. Presentations by the three departments will be followed by those of the education and health departments on Thursday.

KZN Legislature Scopa chairperson Tim Brauteseth said this week’s hearings constitute a critical follow-up exercise to assess whether departments had taken meaningful steps to address issues raised during engagements held in November. These hearings will be labour-intensive, evidence-based engagements aimed at ensuring that the public purse is used lawfully, efficiently and in the best interests of the people of KwaZulu-Natal. Brauteseth, who said Scopa will not accept broad assurances or commitments unsupported by documentary proof, warned that departments failing to demonstrate progress could face parliamentary action.