Auditor-General (AG) Kimi Makwetu has the kind of job where delivering bad news is par for the course.
The latest audit into local government by the Auditor-General paint a very bleak picture, though, showing system failure and dysfunctionality in South Africa.
Makwetu says that the accountability for financial and performance management continues to worsen in most municipalities, with some just flat out disregarding the audit office’s recommendations.
For a quick look at the numbers, here’s BusinessTech:
The Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) audited 257 municipalities and 21 municipal entities for the 2017-18 financial year. Of the audited municipalities, the audit outcomes of 63 regressed while those of 22 improved.
Only 18 municipalities managed to produce quality financial statements and performance reports, as well as complied with all key legislation, thereby receiving a clean audit.
This is a regression from the 33 municipalities that received clean audits in the previous year.
To reiterate, only 18 out of 257 municipalities received a clean audit.
In addition, the AG added that “only 19% of the municipalities could give us financial statements without material misstatements”.
Some of the more pertinent stats below:
Here’s a quick look at the rarities that were municipalities who achieved a clean audit:
Twelve of these municipalities are in the Western Cape and include the local municipalities of Swellendam, Witzenberg, Bergrivier, Breede Valley, Cape Agulhas, Cederberg, Hessequa, Matzikama and Overstrand.
Other municipalities that consistently perform well include Senqu (Eastern Cape), Midvaal (Gauteng) and Okhahlamba (Kwazulu-Natal).
12 out of 18 in the Western Cape says something about the way this province is run. Nowhere near perfectly by any stretch of the imagination, but among the best of a really bad bunch.
Sadly, when money is squandered and corruption runs rife, it’s the people who really suffer. Here are some damning infrastructure stats:
The Daily Maverick has also unpacked the AG’s audit, and it’s the Free State we’ll look into below:
“The Free State local government environment displayed a total breakdown in internal controls as the province’s political and administrative leadership, yet again, exhibited no response to improve its accountability for financial and performance management… we doubt if there is political will to do the right thing for the right reason, mainly due to political interference to the detriment of good governance.”
Good thing the man who served as the Premier of the Free State from 2009 until 2018 has been dealt with.
Jokes, that would be Ace Magashule, and he seems to be more powerful than ever.
We don’t want to be the harbingers of doom and gloom here, but it’s all a bit of a mess.
