R12m looting of Gauteng funds means more suffering for residents without jobs
15 August 2021
While thousands of Gauteng residents are still experiencing the dire economic after effects of the looting and unrest in the province a month ago, it is extremely concerning that a number of public servants across various departments in the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) have undergone a disciplinary hearing for misconduct, with some cases resulting in a financial loss to the GPG.
During the hard lockdown, many breadwinners lost their jobs, whilst public service officials still earned a good salary. Yet, some of these officials have opted to greedily use government systems and irregular processes to further enrich themselves.
In a reply to our questions tabled around the Public Service Commission Report of 2019/20 financial year, it was revealed that the Department of Health was the worst offender when it came to disciplinary hearings. 41 cases of disciplinary hearings were held, of which 39 officials were charged.
The Department of Sports, Arts, Culture and Recreation had completed three disciplinary proceedings for financial misconduct, which resulted in one dismissal. A total of R12 095 535,40 was lost by the department and has not been recovered as yet.
While the Infrastructure department completed five disciplinary hearings, a total of R345 000,00 was lost by the department.
The Education Department had 11 disciplinary hearings out of which 10 officials were found guilty and R18 335,40 was lost. The department is in the process of recovering this money.
The Department of Economic Development, Environment, Agriculture and Rural Development only had 1 disciplinary case, but suffered a financial loss of R33 000,00.
The Social Development Department had 3 disciplinary cases and suffered a financial loss of R33 583,48, while the Department of Community Safety had 3 disciplinary hearings.
This misconduct by government officials saw a total of R429 918,88 lost that could have been put to better use to ensure that residents are given the service delivery they deserve.
While the officials involved were either suspended or dismissed, it is worrying that we have so many cases of misconduct, which is a clear indication that there are no proper measures put in place to deter such behaviour.
The only ones on the losing end are the residents of Gauteng who during a global pandemic are subjected to substandard services by our government. The DA will continue to push for swift disciplinary action to be taken against officials who continue to abuse government resources. If the departments where financial misconduct occurred and money was lost do not pursue criminal charges against the implicated officials, the DA will pursue criminal charges.
Public servants found guilty of financial misconduct must not be redeployed to other positions within government and the money must be recovered. Where the DA governs, we deal with financial misconduct swiftly and with full accountability on exactly how we have spent our taxpayers’ money.
Issued by Adriana Randall, DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Finance and e-Government, 15 August 2021
