Latest news with #AuditorGeneralofSouthAfrica
The South African
2 days ago
- Business
- The South African
The best-run municipality in South Africa is a coastal dream
The office of the Auditor General of South Africa (AGSA) recently published its annual review of local municipalities, covering audit results for the 2023/24 financial year. As reported by BusinessTech , this audit also revealed the best-run municipality in the country – with the West Coast walking away with the title. The AGSA listed the 25 municipalities in the country that had achieved consecutive clean audits. Most of these municipalities are in the Western Cape, which accounts for 17, more than all the other provinces combined. The West Coast District Municipality (WCDM), which stretches from the northern edge of the Cape Town Metropole to the border of the Northern Cape, was given the 'best-run' status out of 257 municipalities in South Africa. This status has also drawn many property buyers to the region, with Pierre Germishuys, from Seeff West Coast, revealing that between 2021 and 2023, the West Coast experienced a property boom. 'Due to the high demand and boom in sales volumes, there was notable price growth over the five-year period from 2019 to 2024,' Germishuys told BusinessTech . 'The average property price in the broader West Coast and Swartland area rose from around R836,000 to R1.4 million – an increase of about 67%.' he also said. Some popular towns for buyers include the coastal gems of Paternoster, Langebaan, Saldanha Bay, and Yzerfontein. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The Citizen
22-05-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
Tshwane makes strides in corruption fight as city tackles R13bn irregular expenditure backlog
Tshwane expects to conclude investigations into an additional R1 billion worth of irregular expenditure by the end of the 2024-2025 financial year. Tshwane Executive Mayor Nasiphi Moya announced significant progress in the city's fight against corruption, revealing that investigations into R11.7 billion worth of unauthorised, irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure have been completed this financial year alone. The mayor delivered the update during a progress briefing held at Tshwane House in Pretoria West on Thursday. The city expects to conclude investigations into an additional R1 billion worth of irregular expenditure by the end of the 2024-2025 financial year, bringing the total reduction to R12.7 billion from an initial balance of R13 billion. This represents a dramatic improvement from the previous financial year, when only R1.2 billion worth of investigations were completed. 'This has positioned the city to comply with commitments to the Agsa (Auditor General of South Africa) and National Treasury in respect of reducing historic UIFW balances,' Moya said. ALSO READ: Tshwane's R54.6bn budget draws mixed reactions Tshwane accelerates disciplinary action The intensified oversight has yielded concrete results in terms of accountability measures. The number of cases where disciplinary action has been recommended against officials has increased from 126 in February to 349 currently. Criminal prosecution referrals have risen from 39 to 44 cases, while over 900 cases have been referred to the financial disciplinary board, up from just 70 in February. The city has dismissed 85 officials, an increase from 77 reported in February. 'These dismissals range from sexual harassment, rape, to fraud and corruption, bribery, theft and dereliction of duty,' Moya explained. In a notable development, the mayor announced that a former section 79 chairperson will be referred to the Speaker's Office for investigation regarding violations of procurement policies. 'They said a councillor issued a letter giving permission to a private company to make use of our outdoor advertising space, which is outside our procurement processes,' she said. The long-awaited investigation into the Refilwe and Caledonian stadium projects has also concluded. 'I'm happy to announce the investigation was concluded, and there are five officials that have been issued with letters of intention to suspend,' Moya revealed. ALSO READ: Gauteng's waste collection woes: R1 billion needed for landfills, R60 million for fleets Company blacklisting initiative As part of efforts to clean up the city's service provider panel, the National Treasury is currently processing eight companies for blacklisting and restriction due to poor performance or contract contraventions. Moya admitted that the city has faced challenges in serving these companies with formal notices, as many have vacated their registered addresses. 'Upon legal advice, the city will proceed with steps to have these companies blacklisted in absentia and restore [the] integrity of our panel of service providers,' Moya said. To support ongoing governance improvements, the budget allocates R36 million to group audit and risk for forensic investigations in the fight against corruption. ALSO READ: Here is how Tshwane will be spending its R54.6 billion budget Court victory on salary disputes The city achieved a significant legal victory when the Labour Court granted an exemption from implementing a 5.4% wage increase on 9 May 2025, while referring the matter of a 3.5% increase for the 2021-2022 financial year back to the South African Local Government Bargaining Council. Following constructive meetings with the South African Municipal Workers Union (Samu) and the Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union (Imatu), all parties agreed to participate in a mediation process under section 150 of the Labour Relations Act. 'All parties affirmed that mediation offers the best opportunity to reach a mutually beneficial outcome in a timely manner,' Moya said, while acknowledging that both unions expressed disappointment with the court's ruling on the 5.4% increase and reserved the right to appeal. NOW READ: Mayor Moya is working, not hiding
