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Auditor General Kimi Makwetu released a report Wednesday on the real-time audit that President Cyril Ramaphosa requested from his office to track how funds were being spent.
FILE: Labor and Employment Minister Thulas Nxesi addresses a press conference in Pretoria on level 3 lockdown regulations on May 29, 2020. Image: @ GCISMedia / Twitter
JOHANNESBURG – Labor Minister Thulas Nxesi briefed the media on Wednesday following the Auditor General’s findings regarding the TER COVID-19 Relief Fund Audit.
Auditor General Kimi Makwetu released a report on Wednesday on the real-time audit President Cyril Ramaphosa asked his office to do, in order to track how funds were being spent.
Makwetu teams focused on the R147.4 billion specially budgeted for COVID-19 relief, including business and employee support, social relief from distress grants, and procurement of personal protective equipment and other assets. and services.
The report covers spending from the start of the shutdown in April to the end of July.
These are the key points of the Nxesi direction:
MORE THAN R40 BILLION PAID
R41.6 billion has been disbursed in 9.5 million payments to laid off workers, representing 822,000 employers. These benefits have supported millions of workers and their families. The normal FIU payments of R5.9 billion have been earmarked for over one million claimants.
CHARGES IMPOSED FOR CORRUPTION AND FRAUD
On August 24, the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) began a quick forensic audit on the Attorney General’s findings on the FIU with a view to recovering the illegally paid money and indicting the perpetrators.
Thirty-eight court cases have been opened and charges have been brought against the perpetrators, based on evidence from the Attorney General’s findings and suspicious transactions collected by the FIU’s own Risk Management Unit. Some of these cases are already before the courts and some perpetrators in jail.
SUSPENDED CHIEFS
In light of the SIU investigation, the Director General of the Department of Employment and Labor has suspended the senior management of the FIU, including the commissioner, the chief financial officer, the chief operating officer and the head of supply chain.
NATIONAL TREASURE TO HELP WITH FORENSIC PROBE
The National Treasury is assisting the Director General of the department to identify service providers to conduct a forensic investigation into the overall operation of the FIU.
“We have asked the National Treasury to deploy technical resources in the FIU to urgently implement the AG’s recommendations and develop systems for solutions to the gaps and risks identified.”
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