Years of inadequate financial management have led to criticism of the Gauteng Social Development Department

The Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD) is accused of wasting public funds through corruption, mismanagement, and unchecked irregular spending.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) claims that the 2024–2025 Auditor-General's report exposes a department beset by repeated failures and financial turmoil. Despite years of warnings, the report reveals the GDSD's egregious disregard for accountability, growing irregular expenditure, and ongoing mismanagement.

It also highlights the department’s failure to act on the seven damning forensic reports commissioned from BDO and Bowmans back in 2018, which detailed widespread fraud and corruption that still remain unpunished.

According to Corruption Watch, the 2018 forensic reports commissioned by Bowmans and BDO uncovered extensive fraud and corruption within the GDSD. The investigations revealed how hundreds of millions of rand were funneled through non-profit organisations (NPOs) and companies linked to departmental insiders. One report found that a senior official was implicated in irregular payments totaling at least R500 million between 2016 and 2018, channelled to for-profit entities through NPOs under the pretense of community development funding.

Refiloe Nt’sekhe, the DA’s Gauteng Shadow MEC for Social Development, criticised MEC Faith Mazibuko for failing to enforce proper financial controls and for protecting officials accused of corruption. 

She said the department has ignored repeated warnings and failed to act on evidence of fraud and mismanagement.

“Despite these reports recommending criminal charges against officials implicated in fraud and corruption, no action has ensued to date. The Auditor General confirms that the department continues to flout basic financial controls and has failed to ensure consequence management for misconduct identified in previous years.”

She further revealed that the Auditor General’s 2024/25 report exposes serious governance failures within the department, citing clear evidence of non-compliance in both expenditure and consequence management. The report highlights that officials implicated in corruption have faced no accountability while vulnerable citizens continue to suffer.

Specifically, Nt’sekhe pointed out that “on page 130 of the 2024/25 Annual Report, the Auditor General explicitly states that ‘the Accounting Officer did not prevent irregular expenditure’ and that ‘the department has not implemented recommendations from investigation reports.’”

“The report also notes that irregular procurement for food parcels and dignity packs was “approved by the Accounting Officer even though it was practical to invite competitive bids,” underscoring the reckless disregard for procurement laws in programmes that directly affect vulnerable women and children,” she said.

Nt’sekhe condemned the department’s so-called “audit improvement plan” as little more than window dressing, pointing out that six years after the Bowmans and BDO reports exposed widespread corruption and mismanagement in NPO funding and procurement, the same issues persist. 

She added that the Auditor General also found that invalid and deceased NPO beneficiaries were still being counted in service delivery figures, a practice that not only undermines trust but indicates that resources meant for the poor are being manipulated to hide inefficiency and corruption.

Nt’sekhe urged that Mazibuko must immediately present the full BDO and Bowmans reports to the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, outline all actions taken, or not taken, to implement the recommendations, refer officials implicated for criminal prosecution as originally advised, and provide a full account of consequence management measures as mandated by the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA).

She warned that if Mazibuko and Premier Panyaza Lesufi fail to disclose these reports and appear to be covering up corruption, “the DA will take this matter to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) and demand an independent forensic review of all NPO funding since 2018.”

GDSD spokesperson Motsamai Motlhaolwa told The Star that while the officials were initially suspended, “due to capacity constraints the suspension was lifted, allowing them to return to work.” He added that “despite the lifting of suspension, the disciplinary processes are ongoing.”

When asked about allegations of irregular procurement for food parcels and dignity packs, the Motlhaolwa explained that they had to deviate from normal tender procedures to prevent delays in service delivery.

“Delays in the evaluation process by the Bid Evaluation Committee during the initial tender caused the validity period to lapse, meaning the tender had to be re-advertised and could not be awarded on time,” Motlhaolwa said. 

He added that “to prevent disruption in service delivery, the former Accounting Officer approved a deviation from the competitive bidding process.” Motlhaolwa also highlighted ongoing measures to improve project management, including weekly management meetings to monitor progress and ease bottlenecks for more efficient service delivery.

Motlhaolwa said the department has put measures in place to ensure accurate NPO data following the Auditor-General’s findings. 

“The Directorate of Monitoring and Evaluation, in collaboration with the Directorate of NPO Partnerships and Finance, compiles electronic beneficiary data to run through the Computer-Assisted Auditing Tool (CAATs) via the Gauteng Provincial Treasury. Results are communicated for investigation and corrections.

“We also conduct sampled physical verifications in residential facilities for Older Persons and Persons with Disabilities, with discrepancies immediately addressed,” he explained.

The Star

masabata.mkwananazi@inl.co.za