KwaZulu-Natal’s (KZN) Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) follow-up hearings, held earlier this year, tell a double story – real progress yet unfinished work. The Democratic Alliance’s (DA) intention today is to acknowledge the current challenges but also celebrate the green shoots of reform and inspire the next steps that will turn tentative gains into sustained delivery.
The SCOPA committee has studied the Auditor-General’s (AG’s) findings and engaged with KZN’s government departments and entities which appeared before it. Not only did the hearings expose audit failings – they also revealed the thin scaffolding propping up our provincial finances. Yet there is a shift – and there is hope. The era of deferred accountability is slowly coming to an end but it is imperative that KZN’s Government of Provincial Unity (GPU) government pick up the pace.
Today, the DA – as part of KZN’s Government of Provincial Unity (GPU) – acknowledges the shortcomings that continue to face our province and reiterates its commitment to charting a path forward. In doing so, we must highlight the real and measurable changes we are beginning to see under the leadership of KZN Finance MEC, Francois Rodgers. What we are witnessing is not theory or distant best practice from overseas – it is practical reform happening right here in KZN.
One of the strongest examples of this change is the support given to KZN’s Department of Education (DoE). Faced with billions of rands in irregular expenditure and a backlog of more than 40 000 payment vouchers, MEC Rodgers’ Treasury department stepped in to provide specialised assistance. Interns were brought on board, forensic support was approved and a modern electronic voucher system is being procured. These efforts are transforming how the department accounts for spending – turning chaos into structure.
Within KZN’s Department of Transport (DoT), Treasury has gone even further by implementing a fast-track condonation panel, with billions of rands in a legacy of irregular expenditure being reviewed. By mid-year, every unresolved case must be either fully condoned or escalated, for recovery. This approach is recognition of the fact that endless audits mean nothing if provincial government departments cannot fix what the AG uncovers.
Within KZN’s Department of Health (DoH), Treasury has assigned skilled officials to district offices and critical funds are being earmarked to upgrade digital records so that preventable medico-legal claims are caught early.
Within the province’s Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI), internal accountability has taken root under MEC, Martin Meyer. Corruption has not only been exposed but acted upon while officials are being held to account and recovery steps initiated. These are standards that must be set across all KZN government departments and entities. Public Works has shown that consequence management is not just a buzzword – it is a governance tool when applied with intent.
KZN’s Treasury has also dispatched professionals, across a range of entities, to build expenditure registers, train Supply Chain Management (SCM) staff and close decade-old audit findings. For too long, provincial government departments were left to stumble alone – now they are being guided, supported and held accountable.
However, good beginnings are not a destination. Real change will require consistency, clarity, and courage.
The DA therefore proposes the following practical recommendations for reform, in line with the GPU’s shared mission of safeguarding the public purse;
1. That every accounting officer collaborates with provincial Treasury to publish live data on audit condonation. A real-time resolution tracker – similar to the one in the DA-led Western Cape. We need a system that allows the public to and departments to see which findings have been addressed and which remain. Visibility drives urgency and builds trust
2. That departments act immediately when Treasury uncovers fraud or irregularities. Delays in opening cases or recovering losses weakens accountability while delayed justice signals to wrongdoers that there are no consequences for their actions.
3. That supplier payments be prioritised. KZN’s DoE has begun clearing its backlog, now others must follow. Small businesses providing goods and services should not face collapse because government fails to pay on time.
4. That the condonation fast-track panel publish monthly updates. The public deserves to know what has been cleared, what is pending and the current financial risks.
5. That departments relying on Treasury support urgently build internal capacity. Within a year these departments must show how they have embedded transferred skills and improved their systems.
6. That audit-readiness workshops are expanded provincially. These workshops, already in place within some municipalities, are held before the AG arrives. Provincial expansion will assist departments to avoid repeat findings.
7. That SCOPA moves beyond paperwork. Site inspections by SCOPA committee members must verify that what is committed to on paper is happening in practice.
These recommendations are not abstract – they are real, workable solutions and tried and tested practices where the DA governs. They are solutions that have led to clean audits, payment discipline and fiscal stability – a model of governance that the DA is striving to make happen as a member of KZN’s Government of Provincial Unity (GPU).
If provincial government is serious about fixing what is broken, these are the kind of reforms that will get us there. KZN’s people do not expect perfect – they want honest governance that improves year on year. They want a government that acts when wrongdoing is exposed, not one that dithers while millions of rands are lost.
KZN’s GPU must show that it is capable of learning, correcting, and growing. Because, in the end, our citizens won’t remember our words. Instead, they will remember if their roads were fixed, if an ambulance got to their loved one in time and if their government worked hard to deliver. This is the legacy that must be built.