The long-awaited Kabuso report, which implicates several Makana Municipality employees and councillors in wrongdoing has finally been released to the public. However, the report didn't even make it on to the agenda of this week's council meeting. The embattled municipality had indicated that the implementation of the final report would be discussed in this week's meeting, but there was no sign of it in Council documents.
The long-awaited Kabuso report, which implicates several Makana Municipality employees and councillors in wrongdoing has finally been released to the public. However, the report didn't even make it on to the agenda of this week's council meeting. The embattled municipality had indicated that the implementation of the final report would be discussed in this week's meeting, but there was no sign of it in Council documents.
According to insiders, some councillors were given copies of the report – separate from the agendas – on the day of the meeting, while others received them the previous day. In a statement last month, municipal spokesperson Yoliswa Ramokolo confirmed Council resolved that the version of the report submitted in the 26 February council meeting is deemed to be the final Kabuso report.
Ramokolo said any future discussion on the report in Council would thus be treated as public and will no longer be a confidential item. Makana Municipality has appointed a committee to investigate councillors implicated in corruption in the Kabuso audit firm's report.
The committee will be made up of five councillors from the three political parties in the Makana Council and will be chaired by ANC councillor Vuyani Kolisi, with councillor Ernest Louw of the ANC as secretary.
Other councillors in the committee are Nonzameko Thyantsula of the ANC, the DA's Les Reynolds and Nozipho Plaatjie from the Congress of the People. Ramokolo said a special council meeting would be convened within 14 days to clarify the implementation of the findings of the committee.
However, there wasn't any discussion or an item relating to the report in the council meeting on Tuesday this week. There had been a lot of confusion around the four versions of the report produced by the Kabuso audit firm. Former Council Speaker, Rachel Madinda-Isaac, resigned with immediate effect as a councillor in Makana Municipality on 17 September.
In previous reports it was recommended that both she and former mayor Zamuxolo Peter submit written explanations as to why they should not be suspended in terms of the councillors' code of conduct. However, in the version of the report that has been adopted by Council, Peter is no longer implicated.
The report recommends that the Council request Madinda-Isaac to provide written explanations as to why action should not be taken in terms of the Code of Conduct. This is in reference to her signing a settlement agreement with axed municipal manager Pravine Naidoo on behalf of Council without the delegation of such power by Council.
The report also revealed details of alleged irregularities ranging from appointments in which correct protocols weren't followed to irregular payments. In January 2013, the Mayor's Strategic Manager Mncedisi Boma took possession of Naidoo's personnel file and has failed to return it.
The file is the property of Makana Municipality. The report recommends that Boma be charged for allegedly causing Makana Municipality to incur irregular expenditure. This charge arises from Boma's alleged instruction to then acting Chief Financial Officer Marius Crouse to pay Naidoo's legal costs, without Council's approval.
The legal fees initially amounted to R86 142.32, However, this was amended by Crouse to R108 374.79 as per Boma's verbal instruction. Crouse must provide a written explanation for his part in the matter, according to the recommendations. The municipality is also ordered to recover the amount of R108 374.79 from Naidoo.
Ramokolo hadn't responded to questions at the time of going to press.
*The full report will be available on the Grocott's Mail website within the next few days.
It will also be published on the Makana Municipality website, according to Ramokolo. anele@grocotts.co.za
