Johnathan Paoli
President Cyril Ramaphosa said that the expected lifestyle audits for members of the executive and public servants has been delayed and that this delay could prove pernicious for the government, looking ahead.
The President was in Parliament on Tuesday, as part of a question and answer session with members of the National Assembly, on a broad range of issues including lifestyle audits, attacks on the judiciary and the strategy for the devolution of the passenger rail.
President Ramaphosa said that lifestyle audits of public servants have been compulsory since 2021, and that as of March this year, over 11,000 public servants in the national government have undergone the process.
The president said the Office of the Director-General in the Presidency and Secretary of the Cabinet spearheaded the process and was initiated institutionally towards the end of last year.
Ramaphosa confirmed that while members of the executive, including himself, have submitted all documents and consented to the process, delays have arisen from a change in service providers facilitating the audits, consequently setting the process back.
Praising the role of lifestyle audits for public servants as a good governmental measure to ensure honest and effective governance, the President said that delaying the audits could prove dangerous in undermining a just and accountable public service to the country and consequently the Minister for State Security was currently addressing this.
“I am one of those who sees the delays in vetting people being quite detrimental to our public service,” Ramaphosa said.
Ramaphosa said that it is expected for the lifestyle auditing process to be completed by the end of the year.
The DA, however, has slammed the excuse given by the President, with Federal Leader John Steenhuisen saying that the nearly six-year long promise given by Ramaphosa to conduct lifestyle audits remains shockingly incomplete and inconclusive.
Referencing recent media exposes of Deputy President Paul Mashatile’s lifestyle that many have called opulent, the opposition party criticized the president for the delay, questioning his commitment to eradicating corruption and financial mismanagement within the executive.
Steenhuisen said the Western Cape Premier, Alan Winde, initiated and concluded a comprehensive lifestyle audit of all members of his provincial executive, which was at all times made transparent and accessible to the public, within six months of promising them.
“South Africans are tired of the excuses made to allow impunity to reign supreme under this government,” Steenhuisen said.
The party leader said that the reason for the service provider change was unacceptable and that the country was getting tired of empty promises, increasing inequality and sustained corruption.
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