Podcasts about parliament's standing committee

Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts has received an update from the Department of Higher Education regarding investigations into the National Skills Fund investigation and the National Student Financial Aid Scheme. The forensic investigation was commissioned at the committee's insistence and direction, following disclaimer audit opinions from the Auditor-General for the 2019 / 2020 and the 2020/2021 financial years. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to SABC reporter in Parliament, Lulama Matya.

The State Security Agency has slammed former Inspector-General of Intelligence Dr Setlhomamaru Dintwe's demand for a R6.1-million payout as built on misrepresentation - and has gone to court to block it. Dintwe - whose security clearance was pulled by then-spy boss Arthur Fraser when the intelligence watchdog chief started investigating him for alleged abuses in 2018 - is suing President Cyril Ramaphosa, the minister in the presidency and the SSA for more than R6.1 million he claims is still due to him. In papers filed at the Johannesburg Labour Court, Dintwe's lawyers accuse the minister in the presidency and the SSA of ignoring his demands that he be paid the full gratuity he was owed once his service ended (which he says the SSA miscalculated), outstanding salary amounts and nearly half a million rand for the 124 days of leave he says he never took. The SSA and minister in the presidency are, however, adamant the contract erratum Dintwe is relying on to make his demands is constitutionally invalid and not enforceable because it was based on misrepresentation by the former IGI - and have now launched their own Labour Court litigation to obtain a ruling that sets it aside. Recently resigned SSA Director-General Thembisile Majola told the Labour Court this erratum - which was signed by then-minister in the presidency Mondli Gungubele and the chairperson of Parliament's Standing Committee on Intelligence Jerome Maake two days after Dintwe's term ended - had inflated the IGI's remuneration by 52% or R1.9-million. She said in an affidavit filed two weeks before she left office: At no stage were the [SSA] and the [SSA Director-General] consulted in relation to the amendment of the employment conditions in relation to the remuneration and gratification of the [IGI] prior to the signing of the erratum. Majola further accuses Dintwe of knowing he was acting against the prescripts of the Constitution and the law when he sought the change in his contract and made the misrepresentation to Gungubele and Maake she said he used to justify it. The former IGI "cannot claim to be an innocent part of the conclusion of the erratum," she added. Dintwe was appointed by President Ramaphosa and was tasked with investigating alleged wrongdoing by state intelligence. He began his five-year term as the IGI on 15 March 2017 and ended it on 15 March 2022. Under the conditions of his employment, Dintwe was supposed to receive a salary package that is equivalent to that of the Public Protector (who receives the same salary as a Supreme Court of Appeal judge). The IGI's benefits include a "non-taxable service allowance of R73 435" a year, a "non-taxable entertainment allowance of R45 000" a year, use of a state vehicle for private use (up to 75 000km), paid travel and accommodation for his spouse, "unlimited hotel accommodation similar to that of a deputy minister" and an "operational catering allowance". Dintwe's contract also reveals, in addition to unlimited business class local and international flights, he was given 24 business class tickets for domestic travel every year, which he was able to give to whomever he chose. This benefit is not given to the Public Protector, and the SSA and IGI has refused to comment on its purpose, on the basis the dispute over Dintwe's remuneration is sub judice. Dintwe's entitlement to these airline tickets is not disputed in this litigation, however. Like the Public Protector, the IGI is entitled to receive a gratuity at the end of the term. That gratuity is calculated according to a specific formula and - as in the case of the Public Protector - typically runs into several million rand. According to Dintwe, the terms according to which his gratuity was calculated incorrectly recorded his five-year term of office as being seven years, the same as the Public Protector. As a result, he said, Gungubele and Maake signed an erratum (effectively an addendum to his employment contract) on 17 March 2022, two days after his ...

 Retired police Brigadier Jap Burger, has just concluded his engagement with members of Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts. Burger has assured committee members that state capture still remains prevalent at many of the country's State Owned Enterprises. He also confirmed the prevalence of organised syndicates operating at different spheres at Eskom. Burger concluded by advising parliament to look at corruption as a symptom of organised crime and that the National Security Council should consider the situation at Eskom as a key priority to the country's stability.

The implementation of the two-pot retirement system has been postponed to 1 March 2025 and our Senior Legal Advisor, Denver Keswell, provides a summarised update following a meeting between Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance, National Treasury and SARS. Listen to the update and stay ahead of the latest news in the retirement industry.   For more on Nedgroup Investments, visit: nedgroupinvestments.com

Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts has taken a decision to subpoena retired Brigadier Jap Burger to appear before it on Eskom-related investigations. This comes after  Brigadier Burger refused to appear before the committee, telling Speaker of Parliament Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula that Scopa does not have the authority and mandate to call him. Brigadier Burger has snubbed Scopa twice after it had invited him to appear before it. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to chairperson of Scopa, Mkhuleko Hlengwa.

The Special Investigating Unit has found that National Treasury flouted its own internal procurement processes when it awarded a contract for the implementation of the Integrated Financial Management System in 2016. It says the contract with service provider Oracle resulted in fruitless and wasteful expenditure amounting to 68-million rand. It also found that there was a conflict of interest for some of the former directors general at the Treasury.  This emerged when the SIU updated  Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) on their investigation into the project. Abongwe Kobokana  reports...  

 Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) has called for finality in resolving the re-opening of the Cape Town central railway line.  The railway line, between Nyanga and Cape Town, was closed for about three years after people built shacks along it, raising safety concerns for both the shack dwellers and commuters.  The line is only partially operating between Nyanga and Maitland, as negotiations continue on the relocation of the shack dwellers. MPS together with Prasa officials embarked on a site visit to the railway line. Bongiwe Zwane spoke to Zalene Merrington

Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts has resolved to call on presidency including the Auditor General to account before it for the ongoing challenges at the Power Utility, Eskom. Committee chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa says the former Eskom CEO, Andre De Ruyter will also need to come back to the committee for further clarity on some of the issues. This as the committee continues with its work to get to the bottom of the allegations made by De Ruyter of wide-spread corruption, fraud, sabotage and criminals cartels operating as the power utility. Hlengwa explains

President Cyril Ramaphosa this week met with the National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council to discuss the government's response to the recommendations of the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture, Corruption and Fraud in the Public Sector. The council was appointed in August 2022 to deepen the country's fight against fraud and corruption. It augments the work done by law enforcement agencies and plays an independent role in terms of combating corruption and other criminal activities. The President's meeting came in the same week that Public Enterprises Minister, Pravin Gordhan appeared before Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts as it still tries to get to the bottom of allegations of large scale corruption, fraud, sabotage and crime cartels at Eskom. Also a month ago today, the first state capture trial ended in a discharge for the defendants, with acting Bloemfontein high court judge Nompumelelo Gusha saying both the police and prosecution had been woefully inept in their handling of the Nulane Investments fraud and money-laundering case. To look at the adequacy of the response to South Africa's endemic corruption we spoke to Firoz Cachalia, Chairperson of the National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council. 

The Government seems to be pushing ahead with its plans to use Turkish company Karpowership's mounted power plants in an effort to alleviate the country's energy crisis. During his appearance before Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA), Public Enterprises Minister, Pravin Gordhan shared his thoughts on the matter, saying that if the terms are right, South Africa should use Karpowership. The company won preferential bidder status in 2021 as part of the government's emergency power procurement program, which sought to combat load shedding. Elvis Presslin spoke to the CEO of the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa), Wayne Duvenage

Former Eskom Chief Executive Officer, André de Ruyter has continue to face pressure from members of Parliament's Standing Committee of Public Accounts, as he refused to reveal the name of the senior politician he has accused of engaging in criminality at the power utility. A number of MPs have asked de Ruyter over and over again why is did not make statements to authorities after he claimed to have alerted them about criminality at Eskom. During an interview with journalist, Annika Larson earlier this year, de Ruyter made allegations of maladministration, corruption and the sabotage of infrastructure allegedly involving a senior politician. Chairperson of the committee, Mkhuleko Hlengwa pressed him to tell Parliament the name of the politician.  

 Parliament's Standing Committee of Public Accounts has resolved to summons former Eskom Group Chief Executive Andre De Ruyter  to appear before it to give further information. This follows De Ruyter's refusal to disclose the name of the minister who allegedly told him to let some people eat a little. De Ruyter stated unwillingness to jeopardise ongoing investigations and fear for his own security as some of the reasons for this. He was appearing before parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts which wanted him to elaborate on his comments in a TV interview about criminal networks working at Eskom. Sakina Spoke to SABC reporter, Joseph Mosia 

Eyebrows have been raised following the revelation that prior to his visit, the president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE),  Sheik Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, donated R20-million to the Eastern Cape government to enable it to upgrade the airport where he and his entourage landed. The Sheik and 500 of his guests reportedly landed at the Bulembu Airport for a visit meant to convince citizens of the UAE that the Eastern Cape is a tourist and an investment destination. Questions are now being raised as to how donations from foreign governments are handled and who is accountable for the transaction. Eastern Cape government spokesperson, Khuselwa Rantjie, in an interview with my colleague John Gericke, confirmed that the province received the monetary gift. To help us understand how donations from foreign governments are handled and who is accountable for the transaction, we spoke the Themba Godi, former Chairperson of Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts - SCOPA

here has been widespread shock and disbelief following the announcement of the failure of the Gupta brothers' extradition process in the United Arab Emirates.   Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola said all necessary diplomatic and legal processes were followed in South Africa's bid to extradite the Guptas but the process was unsuccessful. The ruling took place almost two months ago.  The brothers face charges of fraud, corruption and money laundering related to state capture. For their reaction to this development we spoke to Mkhuleko Hlengwa, Spokesperson for the opposition IFP. He is also the Chairman of Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts - SCOPA ...

Standing Committee on Public Accounts Chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa has accused Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana of acting in bad faith. The comments come after Godongwana's decision to withdraw Eskom's exemption from disclosing irregular, wasteful, and fruitless expenditures in its financial reports after it was gazetted. Hlengwa says Godongwana did not do proper consultation prior to the gazetting. To discuss the matter further Elvis Presslin spoke to Chairperson of Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance, Joe Maswanganyi

Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan said the South African Airways (SAA) deal with government's chosen partner, the Takatso consortium, "remained alive" and dismissed a major schism in the consortium as "argy-bargy". On Monday, Gidon Novick resigned from the consortium's board, citing concerns about its ability to raise the money needed for the deal. The former co-CEO of kulula.com and co-founder of LIFT, also represented Global Airways, an aviation leasing company which owns LIFT. They are the minority shareholders in Takatso, and were supposed to contribute aviation expertise to a "new" SAA. The investment fund Harith is the majority partner in the consortium and was responsible for raising money for the deal. Takatso is supposed to take a 51% stake in SAA. In return, they would invest R3-billion in the airline over two years. For its part, Harith said Novick's resignation was "appropriate" given the potential conflicts of interest between LIFT and SAA. On Tuesday, Gordhan told Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts that it was intriguing that Novick resigned from the Takatso board, but did not resign as a partner, likening such an act to "having your cake and eating it". Global Airways and Novick are retaining their stakes in Takatso. "Mr Novick was a small and relatively minor party in a transaction. Just because he happens to be somebody with experience somewhere in his past, as all of us do, doesn't discredit everybody else, nor does it mean that what he puts on the table is something that one must take seriously," Gordhan said. Gordhan said that despite concerns the deal was still moving along. "Issues have emerged in the public domain over the last 24 hours, but that is an internal matter as far as the consortium is concerned and is part of the argy-bargy of such a transaction. The transaction remains both alive and live," said Gordhan. 'Minor party' Gordhan and multiple members of the delegation, which included the Department of Public Enterprises and SAA, told Scopa that the Takatso deal was in a "sensitive" stage, which prevented them from sharing the finer details. Scopa member and Democratic Alliance MP Alf Lees insisted on the committee getting a full report of SAA's financials, saying that Scopa and the South African public must know what SAA's financial position and the process of the transaction was. "This cannot be a closed process. Who is the department talking to at Takatso if the CEO does not know the details? This is a parliamentary committee that is owned by the South African public. To say that performance is better than budget is really treating us with disdain," said Lees. In response to a question from Lees on how SAA hoped to fund the transaction if Takatso did not have the funding, Gordhan said the department had been given an assurance that the deal would not fall through over a lack of funding. SAA CEO and interim chair John Lamola said on 3 November, the Special Investigating Unit was making progress in investigating 23 contracts at SAA relating to general procurement and aircraft leases dating back to 2015-16. "Matters being investigated were indicated without providing detailed information into what they are investigating that all of them are sensitive and withheld so as not to impugn on the reputations of companies under investigation," said Lamola.

The Helen Suzman Foundation (HSF) is concerned by two pieces of legislation the government is aiming to push through as it seeks to comply with recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to avoid greylisting. The HSF has made submissions to Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance, taking issue with aspects of both the Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Terrorism Financing Amendment Bill, as well as the Draft Non-Profit Organisation Amendment Bill. In an interview with BizNews correspondent Michael Appel, director of the HSF, Nicole Fritz, says: "We're concerned for freedom of civil society, NPOs generally, and we would point to the fact that the FATF itself maintains that any reforms or amendments undertaken by governments should be consistent with international law obligations, and this requirement of mandatory registration is concerning in that it provides for the potential of government interference, [and] politicisation." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

MPs are not impressed with the Department of Higher Education, this after Minister Blade Nzimande asked members of Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) to keep under wraps the National Skills Fund (NSF) graft report that reveals gross misconduct and mismanagement of funds where almost R5 billion couldn't be accounted for in the past two financial years. Nzimande shared the report with Hlengwa but attached a note asking the committee to treat it as confidential because his department was yet to engage the people named in the report. Scopa has since rejected Nzimande's request to keep the forensic report into NSF 'graft' under wraps.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Auditor-General (AG) Tsakani Maluleke said her office would pursue a strategy to tighten internal controls on appointments and compensation-related transactions. This after a Bowmans report cleared her of eight allegations made by the AG's head of human resources, Mlungisi Mabaso, but raised these matters as internal shortcomings. Maluleke was briefing Parliament's Standing Committee on the Auditor General (SCOAG) on Friday morning on the report into the now-refuted allegations. After clashing with Maluleke over his performance and the low number of recruited trainees to work at the institution that successfully obtained a Certificate of Theory in Accountancy (CTA), Mabaso proceeded to accuse Maluleke of clearing irregular transactions and making irregular appointments. In the Bowmans report, Advocate Werner Krull clears Maluleke of any wrongdoing and refutes Mabaso's claims that she authorised a string of unlawful payments as the incumbent and deputy AG to benefit the late former AG Kimi Makwetu. Krull found that while he had 22 years' experience in public relations, the appointment of Harold Maloka as head of communications did not meet the legal requirement, after the waiver of the recruitment process. Mabaso had also accused Maluleke of paying interest on the deferred compensation package to Makwetu's widow, without the authorisation of SCOAG. Krull found that while the interest was payable on the package "the calculation of and the dates in respect of which interest was paid was incorrect". The report recommended that the calculation be revisited and, if necessary, be recouped from his estate. Deputy AG Vonani Chauke told the committee that while the Bowmans investigation cleared Maluleke of wrongdoing, the document-keeping standards at the institution where it related to appointments needed to be improved. "In cases where the executives responsible did not do their jobs, we will take action. We take the legal opinion of the report seriously and we will work to tighten control weaknesses with a time-bound strategy," said Chauke. Chauke said after interrogating the legal opinion, the audit committee noted weaknesses in two out of the nine allegations against the AG, namely the calculation of interest paid to the deceased estate of the late AG Mr Makwetu and the appointment of the head of communications. "These isolated matters of procedure will be considered in the broader context of the AGSA's organisational risk assessment. The executive leadership committed to including the procedural weaknesses in a plan for the committee's monitoring at its scheduled meetings," Chauke said. Maluleke said she met with Mabaso in June after he had complained that the manner in which she held him accountable for the low uptake of accredited recruits amounted to humiliation. She said Mabaso asserted that if his claims against her went public, they would hurt his reputation, and he then proceeded to request a financial settlement. She said she refused to entertain a financial settlement to facilitate Mabaso's exit, asking him to either continue working or resign. "I cannot allow myself to be intimidated or threatened from doing my job. It is against this background that I had these allegations subjected to a swipe and transparent review. We have been transparent with staff and oversight institutions about this matter from the beginning," she said. A statement from the office of the AG said Mabaso is expected to appear before the disciplinary committee before the end of September.

The Auditor General of South Africa has released a report naming and shaming 15 government departments who consistently incurred fruitless and wasteful expenditure over five years amounting to R1.5bn. AG CFO Bongi Ngoma also briefed Parliament's Standing Committee on Appropriations about the financial health of government departments, agencies, and state-owned entities. It's a shocking state of affairs. BizNews correspondent Michael Appel takes a look. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Catch one of five 2022 Conservative leadership candidate interviews where Aidan dives deep into policy with each of the leadership candidates. Today Aidan is joined by Roman Baber. Stay up to date with the Baber campaign here https://www.joinroman.ca/ Recorded on 07/19/2022 Roman Baber served as Member of Provincial Parliament from the riding of York Centre from June 2018 to June 2022. He served as Chair of Parliament's Standing Committee on Justice Policy from September 2019 until February 2021. He was removed by Doug Ford from the Ontario government caucus after calling out the collateral harm of lockdowns in January 2021. Since then, Roman has been a staunch advocate in favour of a balanced covid response and in particular against passports, mandates and lockdowns due to their toll on the health and mental health of Canadians. Roman brought legislation to cut MPP pay to CERB levels while Emergency Orders are in place, was in litigation against the Attorney General of Ontario to defend Canadians' right to protest and worship outdoors and brought a Bill to outlaw workplace mandates. Roman is passionate about and is well familiar with justice, transit and autism policy. Roman was born and lived in the former Soviet Union until he was almost 9. He then lived in Israel until he immigrated to Canada with his family at age 15. Roman obtained a BA from York University and graduated from law school at the University of Western Ontario. During his last year of law school, Roman was a supervisor at the school's legal aid funded clinic. He was called to the Ontario Bar in 2006 and practiced civil and commercial litigation until his election in 2018. Roman is also an occasional lecturer at an after-school program, engaging high school students on constitutional and criminal law topics. He loves tennis, Canadian kindness, the Toronto Raptors and his special someone, Nancy Marchese.

President Cyril Ramaphosa did not report the foreign exchange transaction that was the source of the US dollars stolen from his farm, as required by law, his response to the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) indicates. Ramaphosa also has yet to respond adequately to the central bank, which has written to his lawyers asking for details of the transaction. In a letter to Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance on Tuesday the governor of the Reserve Bank Lesetja Kganyago said following press reports about the robbery its Financial Surveillance Department had written to Ramaphosa's legal advisors on 20 June requesting "information and details regarding the origin of the foreign currency and any underlying transaction that may pertain to it." The bank had initially given Ramaphosa 21 business days to respond to the letter and subsequently granted an extension of 15 working days. The letter states, "The department has since received a response from the president's legal advisors to which further information and details were requested by the department. A response to this additional request for information is required and expected no later than 8 September, whereafter the department will be able to progress its investigation into the matter." Kganyago's letter to the committee follows letters written to it by two of the committee members Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) deputy leader Floyd Shivambu and the Democratic Alliance (DA) MP Dion George. The SARB administers South Africa's exchange control regulations and investigates contraventions. Under the regulations, all foreign currency transactions must be reported to the bank within 30 days. Kganyago's letter requesting information confirms that Ramaphosa did not report the transaction as required by law. Ramaphosa has previously said that the cash stolen from his farm Phala Phala was the proceeds of the sale of animals. The theft first came to light in June when former spy boss Arthur Fraser declared in an affidavit lodged with the police that at least $4-million, which had been concealed in furniture, was stolen from the farm. Ramaphosa has said the amount was nowhere near as large but has not provided any information on the sum. On Tuesday, Ramphosa faced a chaotic and humiliating question session in Parliament where for several hours he declined to answer questions on Phala Phala, citing legal advice. While opposition MPs from the EFF, African Transformation Movement and DA demanded answers, African National Congress MPs argued that Ramaphosa's refusal to answer constituted "a response" which was all that was required in terms of the rules. The sitting was eventually adjourned. On social media Ramaphosa supporters defended the President arguing that it was not Ramaphosa's responsibility to oversee the day-to-day running of the farm. Shivambu said that Kganyago's letter was proof that Ramaphosa was already guilty of at least one crime, in failing to report the transaction. DA leader John Steenhuisen described Ramaphosa's failure to answer as "Nkandla 2.0" reminiscent of the former President Jacob Zuma's refusal to answer questions on the upgrades to his home, while MPs rallied around him to defend him.

Guest: Jannie Rossouw | School of Economic and Business Sciences at Wits Business School (WBS) Africa is joined by Prof Jannie Rossouw, School of Economic and Business Sciences at Wits Business School to talk about what 'grey listing' means and how it affects South Africans. The Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago put out a stern warning that the threat of the country possibly being grey listed, should be taken very seriously. The Governor presented the Reserve Bank's annual report to Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance yesterday.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Roy L Hales/Cortes Currents -102 British Columbian First Nations are calling for fish farms to move onto land. The Klahoose, Tla'amin, Homalco and K'omox First Nations are among them. On May 12, Chief Bob Chamberlain, Chair of the First Nations Wild Salmon Alliance, addressed Parliament's Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans.  He began by addressing them in his native tongue. This is a recording of the rest of his opening presentation.

South Africa's decision to sell a majority stake in the country's loss-making national airline represents an ongoing financial risk to the state as the terms were skewed heavily toward the buyer, the National Treasury said. The finer print of the deal that saw the Takatso Consortium take a 51% shareholding in South African Airways last year represents a “contingent liability,” the Treasury said in a document emailed to Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts that was later withdrawn. That's partly because Takatso -- made up of a local jet-leasing company and private-equity firm -- has the right to assess whether any ongoing liabilities in SAA be settled by the government, the Treasury said in the document seen by Bloomberg. The emergence of the concerns came as Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan was set to appear before the public-accounts committee. Gordhan, a former finance minister, had made the removal of SAA from the state roster a key tenet of his role overseeing he Department of Public Enterprises, which also counts debt-laden utility Eskom Holdings among its responsibilities. The terms “may result in the state providing funds in excess of its shareholding,” the Treasury said. While the letter was withdrawn, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana said at the hearing that the National Treasury didn't participate in the sale process and the substance of the “letter stands.” The department declined to immediately comment further. PLANES GROUNDED The sale of SAA was announced in June last year after the airline emerged from lengthy bankruptcy proceedings, during which its planes were grounded for well over a year and the workforce cut by 80%. The airline, which used to serve destinations across Africa and a number of major global cities, hasn't made money since 2011 and received state bailouts that totaled billions of rand. “We all have the responsibility in government to reduce the guarantees and contingent liabilities,” Gordhan said in the hearing. The Department of Public Enterprises declined to comment further. The National Treasury said it was not consulted on the sale of the stake, which it said cost 51 rand ($3.16), and remains in the dark about a number of other agreements such as Takatso's proposed issue of preference shares to the DPE. It's also concerned that government guarantees on SAA's debt remain in place, according to the document. The finance minister at the time of the sale, Tito Mboweni, clashed repeatedly with Gordhan over SAA, maintaining the company be allowed to go bankrupt and airlines operated by private companies. He was replaced by Godongwana in August. “The strategic equity partner may assume very minimal shareholder risk for the acquisition of a majority shareholding a the purchase price of 51 rand,” the Treasury said. Takatso consists of Johannesburg-based Global Airways, which owns domestic airline Lift, and private-equity firm Harith General Partners.

The office of the Auditor General has informed Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts that it informed the Road Accident Fund that the standard of auditing at the entity is not yet recognised, but RAF went ahead and used it anyway. The AG has told SCOPA that this has resulted in litigation where RAF is disputing the disclaimer opinion it has received. The office was briefing the committee on the annual reports of Road Accident Fund and the South African Airways. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to SABC Parliamentary Reporter, Lulama Dlepu

Political parties have reacted with mixed reactions to the decision by Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) to turn down requests for President Cyril Ramaphosa to appear before it over the alleged use of state funds for party political gains. ANC MP's represented in SCOPA used their majority vote to turn down the request while the DA, the EFF, and the IFP also represented in the same committee voted for the proposal. President Ramaphosa had meanwhile indicated that he would appear before SCOPA if requested following his written response last week to SCOPA. Former SCOPA chairperson, Themba Godi...

Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts, Scopa will deliberate over President Cyril Ramaphosa's response to leaked audio of him suggesting that he knew of instances where state funds were being used for political activities. In a leaked letter seen by SCOPA, President Ramaphosa reportedly denies directly having any information of state funds being used for party political campaigns - He says his comments were based on information already in the public domain and testimony from the state capture commission. Our SABC Parliamentary correspondent, Mercedes Besent elaborates...

Dr Shashi Tharoor, a third-term Member of Parliament for Thiruvananthapuram, is the bestselling author of twenty-two books, both fiction and non-fiction, besides being a former Under Secretary-General of the United Nations and a former Minister of State for Human Resource Development and for External Affairs in the Government of India. He has won numerous awards, including the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman, a Commonwealth Writers' Prize and the Crossword Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2019, Dr. Tharoor was also awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award in the category of ‘English Non-Fiction' for his book An Era of Darkness. He chairs Parliament's Standing Committee on Information Technology.

The Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse (Outa) is to make a submission to Parliament's Standing Committee on Appropriations, calling for government to half the bailout of SAA subsidiaries. Bongani speaks to Outa CEO Wayne Duvenage. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Communications Worker's Union (CWU) says issues facing the South African Post Office (SAPO) include Structural Organisation, Industry regulation and Governance. The union also says that it is very strange top executives at SAPO do not last very long in their positions. Just recently (in January this year) the union says it was shocked and disturbed by the resignation of the Post Office's CFO just three months into the job. Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts is also concerned by the report of the Auditor General on the South African Post Office. SAPO obtained a disclaimer of audit opinion and Auditor General Tsakani Maluleke which found that SAPO is commercially insolvent. The group incurred irregular expenditure of over 200 million rand as well as fruitless and wasteful expenditure exceeding 26 million rand. We spoke to CWU's Aubrey Tshabalala and SAPO CEO, Nomkhitha Mona

Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts has resolved to investigate allegations of racism against Eskom CEO, Andre De Ruyter. The allegations are contained in a letter by the company's Chief Procurement Officer, Solly Tshitangano. He accuses De Ruyter and other officials being biased against black suppliers. The committee says it has a responsibility to investigate the allegations as they have been formally placed before it.

Thousands of public servants and 68 deceased people are among those who benefited from the Unemployed Insurance Fund's Temporary Employee Relief Scheme. That came out in ongoing investigations by the Special Investigations Unit. The SIU and the office of the Auditor General briefed Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts, on the latest information on issues around the UIF financial management relating to Covid-19.

The National Treasury has told Parliament that various state-owned entities have approached it for extra funding totaling nearly ten-billion rand. These include the SABC, Post Office and the Airports Company of South Africa. The National Treasury was briefing Parliament's Standing Committee on Appropriations on its performance as well as measures taken to curb fraud and corruption related to COVID-19.

The Zondo Commission of Inquiry investigating allegations of state capture has spent about 700 million rand since its inception in 2018. This was revealed by the Department of Justice during its briefing to the oversight committee yesterday (Wednesday) when it was presenting its budget. Acting Director-General, Adv JB Skosana says about 18 million rand per month is spent on investigations. Is this money well spent? Former chairperson of Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) and leader of the African People's Convention(APC), Themba Godi....

The assets value of regional airliner SA Express has decreased from one point eight billion to a hundred and thirty million in five weeks. This is according to the airliner's liquidators in a virtual briefing to Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts,-SCOPA. The liquidators appeared before SCOPA to brief it about the airliner's liquidating process. The liquidators took office last month to start the process to disposing off the asset of SA Express.

Members of Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts, SCOPA, have heard that the Public Works and Infrastructure Department had resorted to getting cleaning staff to process invoices by service providers. Officials from the department briefed MPs on their 2018/19 annual report. The report states that that 11-thousand invoices were not paid within the stipulated 30 days. The Cape Town office has the highest number of unpaid invoices because the department relied on cleaning staff for invoices. Zalene Merrington has more ...

Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance says it expects the various South African regulatory bodies to co-operate with other regulators in Germany and the Netherlands who are currently investigating Steinhoff. The German authorities are currently investigating Steinhoff for alleged accounting irregularities. The JSE, Reserve Bank and Financial Services Board are among the South African regulatory and statutory bodies that will appear before a joint parliamentary committee along with Steinhoff today. We speak to Finance Committee Chairperson Yunus Carrim.

Newly-appointed South African Airways CEO, Vuyani Jarana, says the airline has an outstanding debt of over 13-billion-rand. He says they expect to pay seven-billion of the 10-billion-rand capital injection to offset some of the debt. Jarana has told Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance that even after the payment of the bailout, the airline will still owe over nine-billion-rand. Parliamentarians have expressed hope that the new management and board will be able to turn the airline around.

Finance minister, Malusi Gigaba, says he will institute a forensic investigation into why a one billion rand project at the National Treasury has not yielded any results, after more than 10 years. Treasury's Integrated Financial Management system was started in 2005. Its aim is to bring all financial, supply chain and human resource managements in government under one system. Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts roasted officials for the lack of action over this long period. Zalene Merrington reports...

Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance has decided to launch its own inquiry into in illicit financial flows. This after Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago told the committee that the bank laid charges but prosecutors declined to prosecute. Committee chairperson Yunus Carrim says they want to find out why so few cases are being prosecuted and why no task team's been set up to address the problem. Meanwhile The Hawks and NPA feel that they must be given the time and space to do their work; that pressure should not be placed on them to prosecute. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to the Committee's Chairperson Yunus Carrim

Interim SABC board chairperson, Khanyisile Kweyama says the poublic broadcaster has handed investigations against former acting CEO, James Aguma over to the police's Special Investigating Unit. Aguma resigned yesterday. He was in the middle of a disciplinary hearing, which was suspended following his resignation. Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts has reacted with shock to Aguma's resignation before the conclusion of his disciplinary hearing. Scopa says it takes this as admission of guilt for the financial mess that the SABC finds itself in.

Parliament has refused to be briefed by the Chairperson of the board of South African Airways, Dudu Myeni. Myeni arrived without other board members at Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance to brief it on the entity's quarterly report. She was accompanied by the CFO and acting CEO. The committee said it would be futile to engage Myeni alone while there are allegations that she has not been attending board meetings for some time. Meanwhile, the South African Cabin Crew Association (SACCA) says it plans to lay charges against the SAA board over alleged corruption and irregular expenditure which they claim amounts to more than 1 billion- rand. Tsepiso Makwetla spoke to the South African Cabin Crew Association's Feroze Kader and Director and Chief Economist at Econometrix, Dr Azar Jammine

South Africa has lost more than 120-billion US dollars or R 1,5 trillion in illicit financial flows over a ten year period. This is according to the Chairperson of Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance, Yunus Carrim. He has welcomed the gazetting of the Financial Intelligence Centre Amendment Act, or FICA ACT. The legislation has received a mixed welcome from some opposition parties and the Council for the Advancement of the South African Constitution, CASAC. Our Parliamentary Correspondent Mercedes Besent tells us more

Passanger Rail Agency- PRASA says it is working to rid itself of the legacy of its former CEO Lucky Montana. This as Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts asked questions about the agency's management practices and board oversight. The Auditor General found among other things that PRASA had incurred fruitless and wasteful expenditure to the value of more than 550 million rand. Worse was when Transport Minister, Dipuo Peters told parliament she had never met PRASA's Chief Financial Officer. Joseph Mosia reports..

Parliament's Standing Committee on Finance has criticised the leadership of the South African Airways for failing to implement its turn-around strategy. SAA leadership was briefing parliament on its recovery plan and financial performance. Abongwe Kobokana reports