Gauteng Premier Awards Departments 100% Unqualified Audits in 2023/24 @KASIBCNEWS

 

Gauteng Premier Awards Departments 100% Unqualified Audits in 2023/24 @KASIBCNEWS

Gauteng Premier awards departments and entities for maintaining 100% unqualified audits in 2023/24 

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has on Sunday, 6 October 2024, awarded departments and entities for achieving clean and unqualified audit outcomes noting that there has been a steady increase in the number of departments and entities achieving clean audits over the past three years. 

Seven departments and 14 entities received clean audits while the seven departments and four entities received unqualified audit opinions in the 2023/24 financial year. Six departments sustained their clean audit opinions from the previous financial year.

 The Community Safety improved from unqualified audit to a clean audit. Premier Lesufi noted that seven departments remained stagnant on unqualified opinions with findings in the current year. “We need to encourage them to work hard to get the clean audit. We also need to pay our service providers within 30 days and support the departments that are struggling,” said Lesufi. 

He said he was proud that there was no department that got disclaimer or unqualified audit opinion. “While there are no regressions in the current year’s audit outcomes, there are notable stagnations on unqualified audit opinion with findings from seven departments,” said Lesufi. He further said the Gauteng government was committed to maintain the clean audits that have been achieved, and at the same time improve audit outcomes of other departments and entities going forward. “We will intensify internal controls to ensure that we do not regress,” said Lesufi. He singled out the G-Fleet for starting with a disclaimer to qualified but in the last two years it has achieved a clean audit. Lesufi said this was a demonstration that it is doable.  

He also said the provincial government was working on strengthening the forensic unit in the Office of the Premier and create a mini forfeiture unit to deal with all the small cases instead of taking them to Special Investigating Unit. Meanwhile, the Head and Chief Executive of Special Investigating Unit, Advocate Andy Mothibi, said as part of corruption prevention, the SIU was looking at awareness, education and lifestyle audit amongst other things. “The lifestyle audit is a chapter on its own under the prevention. As part of rolling out the important work of government of ensuring that we are proactive in fighting maladministration. 

At this stage, he said 19 accounting officer level lifestyle audits have been done, which include CEOs and HODs. “We have concluded this process, and the report has been presented to the premier. 

We found that 37% of the audited accounting officers were high risks or they failed the test. Sixteen (16 %) were found to be medium risk while 47 % were low risk. We require that action must be taken against those that failed,” said Mothibi. 

 The following seven departments achieved clean audit opinion: 

1. Office of the Premier 

2. Education 

3. Economic Development 

4. e-Government 

 5. Finance 

 6. Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs 

7. Community Safety 

The following departments achieved unqualified audit opinions: 

1. Health 

2. Social Development 

3. Human Settlement 

 4. Roads and Transport 

5. Agriculture and Rural Development 

6. Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation 

7. Infrastructure Development 

The following entities achieved with clean audit opinions: 

 1. Gauteng Infrastructure Financing Agency (GIFA) 

2. Gauteng Film Commission 

3. Gauteng Liquor Board 

4. Gauteng Growth and Development Agency 

5. Supplier Park Development Company 

6. Constitutional Hill Precinct 

7. Innovation Hub 

8. IDZ Development Company 

9. Cradle of Humankind World Heritage 

10. Dinokeng 

11. Gautrain Management Agency 

12. Gauteng Gambling Board 

13. Gauteng Tourism Authority 

14. G-Fleet Management 

The following entities achieved unqualified audit opinions: 

1. Gauteng Enterprise Propeller 

2. G-Fleet Management 

3. MEDSAS 4. Gauteng Partnership Fund