1. NAVIGATING ETHICAL DILEMMAS AMIDST THE CHALLENGING CLIMATE
11 OCTOBER 2017

2. CONTENTS OF THE PRESENTATION
Legislative framework
Powers and mandate of SCOPA
SA’s challenges;
Where are we
Irregular; fruitless and wasteful expenditure;
Consequence management;
Effects of corruption;
What can be done

3. LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK
Section 55 of the Constitution enables the National Assembly to maintain oversight over all organs of State and to ensure that all executive organs of State in the national sphere of government are accountable to it;
Section 92 enables Parliament to hold Cabinet accountable;
Operationally organs of State at National level and Ministers and their departments are generally held to account to Parliament;
Section 79 and 80 of the Municipal Structures Act provide for establishment of non executive and executive Committees of Council;

4. POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF SCOPA
Rule 206 of Rules confers the following powers & functions to SCOPA which require the committee to consider the following:
The financial statements of all Executive Organs of State and constitutional institutions when they are submitted to Parliament;
Any audit reports issued on those statements;
Any reports issued by the Auditor-General on the affairs of any executive Organ of State, constitutional institution or other public body; and
Any other financial statements or reports referred to the Committee in terms of these Rules.
Section 129 of the MFMA deals with consideration of annual reports by the council

5. THE MANDATE OF SCOPA
SCOPA
The mandate of the Public Accounts Committee is drawn from Section 55 and 114 of the Constitution which states that legislatures are expected to hold all organs of the State accountable
The work of Public Accounts Committee is not only limited to institutions audited by the Auditor-General but also entities that receive money from the public purse
In terms of the PFMA, the executive must submit its annual report to Parliament by 30 September annually

6. SA’s ETHICAL CHALLENGES
Increasing incidence of corruption in the public service;
Increasing irregular; fruitless and wasteful expenditure and lack of consequence management;
Inertia on dealing with corruption;
Low rates of convictions;
SOE bail-outs and guarantees;
Assurance providers that fail in their duties (KPMG case)
Increasing killings of politicians and administrators;
Delays in implementation of infrastructure projects leading to failures and escalation of costs;
Ineffective boards failing to discharge fiduciary duties

7. WHERE ARE WE
According to the 2016 Corruption Perception Index by Transparency International, SA is ranked number 64 out of 178 countries;
There is a decline showing endemic corruption in the public sector;
Irregular expenditure increased to R46,4 billion in 2015/16 for departments and entities; R16 billion for local municipalities and entities;
Weaknesses in SCM was the main contributor to irregular expenditure;

8. FRUITLESS AND WASTEFUL EXPENDITURE
Fruitless and wasteful expenditure also increased to R1,3 billion for departments and entities and R901 million for municipalities

9. Irregular appointment of service providers and human resources;
EXAMPLES
SABC
Irregular expenditure of R5,1 billion; fruitless and wasteful expenditure of R92, 5 million;
Irregular appointment of service providers and human resources;
Purging of senior management
Board members failing in discharging their fiduciary duties;

10. THE EFFECTS OF CORRUPTION AND MALADMINISTRATION

11. WHAT CAN WE DO

12. Strengthen accountability;
WHAT CAN WE DO
Strengthen accountability;
Effective governance structures for the public sector;
political commitment to uproot corruption and maladministration;
ethical leadership;
political will and commitment to prosecute people who misuse public funds and assurance providers who fail in their duties;
End inertia around consequence management;

13. Establish specialized courts to deal with corruption expediently;
WHAT CAN WE DO
Better protection of whistleblowers;
Strengthen anti-corruption bodies and stakeholders such as Anti-Corruption Task Team (ACTT);
Establish specialized courts to deal with corruption expediently;

14. Corruption is rising in the public and private sectors.
CONCLUSION
SA faces a number of challenges. Decline in ethics exacerbates challenges such inequalities and unemployment.
Corruption is rising in the public and private sectors.
The wake of scandals such as the KPMG saga necessitate a need for all stakeholders to fight the scourge
Destroy the seeds of corruption, or it will grow up to your ruin
Anonymous