Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Tourism has raked the Department of Tourism and SA Tourism over the coals for their management of audit findings, citing lack of transparency, accountability and consequence management.
The department and SA Tourism appeared before the committee on Tuesday (June 24) to brief members on their internal progress in addressing 2024 audit findings.
Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille opened the meeting by reading a note from the Auditor General – issued after their last quarterly engagement on April 30. Dubbed “a call to action”, the note urges “improved service delivery enabled by capable, cooperative, accountable and responsible institutions delivering on their mandate”.
It also called on the minister and deputy minister to address the “culture of inadequate accountability and consequence management” and to play an “oversight role with greater impact”. It highlighted the need for regular feedback on target achievement, timely submission of credible financial statements and the need to address key vacancies at SA Tourism, including Chief Financial Officer and Head of Internal Audit.
But a fed-up De Lille said, despite meeting with the SA Tourism board and the departmental Director General and deputies, she is still struggling to receive presentations for the committee on time. The committee requires all presentations to be submitted 72 hours before the sitting. However, De Lille noted that “deadlines mean nothing to SA Tourism”.
She said she regularly has to “plead and beg” and “sometimes even pray” that information reaches the committee on time. She said this shows disrespect to the Portfolio Committee on Tourism, Parliament and the Auditor General. She also said this issue is not limited to committee appearances as it also affects responses to Parliament’s questions and issues such as SA Tourism vacancies.
Briefing the committee, Thokozile Sibiya, Chief Audit Executive in the Department of Tourism, said all 25 audit findings against the department have been addressed. However, while the department claims that all findings have been addressed, it acknowledged that the effectiveness of some remedial actions has not been tested.
Meanwhile, SA Tourism reported that 95% of its audit findings have been addressed. Many of these relate to financial accounting errors and misstatements. The committee also heard that SA Tourism currently has “ineffective” risk management processes and that its internal audit unit is understaffed with just three people available over the past three years.
Committee members expressed dissatisfaction with the presentations and the steps taken to address issues raised by the Auditor General.
The ANC’s Sello Maeco said the department’s presentation was “piecemeal” and did not provide a comprehensive overview of outcomes or investigations. “It is a bleak prognosis of some sort because it doesn’t give hope to members of the public and doesn’t give hope to us as politicians,” he said.
The DA’s Elmarie Linde described Minister De Lille’s response as “alarming”, adding it is “clear that the Auditor General’s recommendations are not taken seriously, not by the ministerial office, not by SA Tourism and not by the department”. She said, if De Lille is dissatisfied with her department’s performance, she should take action.
Ngwanamakwetle Mashabela, representing the EFF, said the department’s report “doesn’t paint a clear picture of accountability”. She described contract variations as a “red flag in terms of value for money, unauthorised expenditure and potential corruption” and called for consequence management for those involved.
MK’s Shunmugam Moodley underscored the need for consequence management, describing the situation as “a damn mess and someone needs to fix it”.
In response to SA Tourism’s presentation, committee members raised concerns about the credibility of the reporting. The DA’s Haseena Ismail said “closure doesn’t equal effectiveness”, adding there is “no evidence of consequence management, disciplinary action and financial recoveries”.
Committee Chair Ronalda Nalumango ruled that the minister, the department and SA Tourism must submit additional information in writing. She also endorsed De Lille’s suggestion that parties return to the committee at a later date with more information.
Nalumango added: “The minister is urged to ensure that all issues raised by the Auditor General, in what was referred to as a call to action, are addressed and consequences are imposed on the accounting officers and deputy directors general for non-performance and negligence of their duties otherwise the issue relating to non-performance, including addressing audit findings, will persist.”
