FORENSIC AUDIT NEEDED INTO GAUTENG'S "SAVED" MOTORSPORT BILLIONS

At yesterday's Finance Committee meeting at the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, Gauteng Finance MEC Mandla Nkomfe stated that the Province would save R8 billion by abandoning the expensive Formula 1 and Gauteng Motorsports contracts, first exposed by the DA last year.

Far from the R600 million already identified in this spurious programme, the cash strapped province in the midst of a global economic recession had been "on the brink"(in the MEC's words) of signing contracts committing it to  R6 billion to bring Formula 1 to Gauteng.

Economic Development MEC Firoz Cachalia, must now go further and conduct a forensic audit into this extraordinary commitment and unearth those responsible for such reckless expenditure.

Gauteng DA Economic Development spokesman, Gavin Lewis said:  ‘It is not enough simply to halt the process. If the province is to avoid a repetition of these extremely suspicious contracts, those responsible for it must be held to account. The Gauteng motorsports debacle cannot just be shut down and swept under the carpet. Government has promised transparency, and Cachalia must provide it."

Statement issued by Gavin Lewis, MPL, Democratic Alliance Gauteng spokesman on economic development, March 3 2010

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