The City of Tshwane came under intense pressure in Parliament on Wednesday as MPs questioned metro officials over allegations linked to a so-called “water mafia,” irregular procurement, and weak consequence management.
During heated hearings before Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa), MPs criticized the metro’s response to findings by the Auditor-General and the Special Investigating Unit, saying officials had failed to provide clear answers.
Frustration emerged early in the session, which began at 9:30 a.m. MPs expressed concern that municipal leadership was not giving them the answers required, with presentations lacking detail on issues outlined by the Auditor-General and the Special Investigating Unit. Instead, officials focused on some progress the city is making, noting that of the 71 audit outcomes identified as issues by the Auditor-General, only about 41% to 50% have been met.
MPs said South Africans are tired of hearing explanations and background stories when procurement irregularities or unauthorized expenditure are pointed out, instead of hearing about action taken toward accountability.
One case highlighted was that of the former Chief Financial Officer, GGareth Mnisi, who has been placed under precautionary suspension after appearing at the Madlanga Commission, where he was linked to procurement around a policing tender in the city. The issue of high-ranking officials being implicated in procurement irregularities was a key focus, particularly how that impacts service delivery.
Much of the questioning centered on trying to understand exactly what the “water mafia” is and how the city is working to eliminate it, ensuring that businesses tendering for city work are legitimate and deserving. The city faces accusations that bidders with the right documentation, proper standing with the revenue service, and proven track records were sidelined in favor of bidders with no proven track record.
Executive Mayor Nasiphi Moya responded to questions about delays in holding officials accountable, explaining that while the Madlanga Commission conducts its own investigations, the city must also do its own investigations, and that process is determined by where they are in the financial year. She stated that some matters heard from Madlanga in recent weeks would only begin being investigated in July, as the new financial year kicks off, with reporting then to the Auditor-General.
“Even with regard to the Madlanga Commission, our CFO was implicated therein. We have now — I must state upfront that the Madlanga Commission is still busy. The findings of the Madlanga Commission have not formally been made available,” she said. “We have looked at what happened at that commission but also what happened in our own supply chain management system. We have identified certain instances of what we consider to be serious non-compliance, and council has acted in terms of disciplinary regulations against the CFO. He is currently on precautionary suspension and has to be charged within 90 days of that date.”
Mayor Moya also sought to defend her executive, saying the city inherited a municipality with significant rot, and turning it around is not an overnight exercise. She noted struggles with capacity to see through disciplinary action and sometimes criminal action.
She also flagged issues with the Financial Disciplinary Board (FDB), saying: “You would appreciate, Chair, that the FDB is supposed to be one of the committees that assist us, especially when it comes to financial misconduct. The FDB has been there but it has not been effective to an extent where it helps us with financial misconduct. We had a chairperson last year who was getting somewhere in terms of cleaning up the case register. Unfortunately we lost that chairperson towards the end of the year due to ill health. We took a report to re-establish the FDB in the city, and a new chairperson will be appointed. They haven’t been able to assist us to take reports and recommendations to council, and it’s one of the weaknesses we are aware of. The re-establishment of the FDB is going to assist us.”
