Gauteng Government using POPI Act, audit process as an excuse for not releasing Covid-19 expenditure reports

6 September 2021

The Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) is avoiding accountability to the taxpayers of the province by failing to disclose expenditure on the procurement of Protective Personal Equipment (PPE) since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In an oral reply to my questions tabled in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature during a recent sitting, the MEC for Finance, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko claimed that the reports on Covid-19 expenditure for February and March have not yet been made public due to the yearend process. The outstanding reports will be published after the audit closure which was due by the end of August 2021.

In addition, it would appear that the Gauteng Government is hiding behind the Protection of Personal Information Act, claiming that they cannot name the suppliers unless prior permission has been given – a flimsy excuse, denying the rights of citizens to know who has been paid with taxpayer money.

By not publishing regular Covid-19 expenditure reports, it would appear as if the Gauteng Provincial Government is flouting National Treasury Note 20 that was published last year.

The GPG has a responsibility to spend our taxpayers’ money in a transparent and responsible manner. It is important now more than ever that government spends their scarce financial resources in a proper manner, especially now that our economy has been hard hit by Covid-19.

Where we govern in the Western Cape, Covid-19 expenditure reports are transparently published on a regular basis, so that the residents are aware of exactly how their money has been spent.

This is what a responsible government would do. The DA will continue to demand that these Covid-19 expenditure reports are made public so that taxpayers can know exactly where and on what their money has been spent.

Issued by Adriana Randall, DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Finance and e-Government, 6 September 2021