QUERY AS E15M PAID TO AG THOMAS, 17 OTHERS

mfanukhona@times.co.sz

MBABANE – A senior officer attached to the Ministry of Public Works and Transport authorised payment of E15 million without the approval of the then principal secretary.

An audit query was raised that 18 companies received payments that were not authorised by Makhosini Mndawe, the then Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Public Works and Transport.

Instead, they were authorised by one of the heads of departments whose name this newspaper cannot reveal at this stage as he was out of the country and asked to give his side of the story upon his return to the country.

Auditor General (AG) Timothy Sipho Matsebula questioned the payments, which he deemed to have been effected in contravention of government regulations.
Among the 18 suppliers and contractors that were paid were AG Thomas and Pots Construction and Technical Services, which both received a large chunk of the E15 million.

Discovered Solutions

The highest paid contractor was AG Thomas at E9.9 million. The balance was then paid to Pots Construction and Technical Services, which was reported to have received E2.3 million in total.

The rest of the companies, totalling to 16 countries, shared about E2.8 million. Kukhanya Gabriel Couto JV was paid E865 100. Kukhanya Gabriel Couto JV had been contracted to undertake the failed Nhlangano-Sicunusa road project, which was never completed regardless of the fact that about E600 million had been paid.

Rontino Investments (Pty) Ltd was paid E337 722 while Discovered Solutions was paid E246 500, with Earthtek Unlimited Spares getting E177 840 for supplies that the AG did not disclose in his report.

It has been a concern among certain government officials and suppliers that the unauthorised expenditure was never raised by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) despite the fact that Auditor General (AG) Timothy Matsebula raised it in his annual report.
They also raised concern that the media al legedly overlooked the issue as well.

Matsebula, the AG, had mentioned in his report that payments amounting to E15 379 076.26 were made without being authorised by the controlling officer. In this case, the controlling officer was Mndawe, the current Principal Secretary in the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office.

Matsebula said normal procedure dictated that the roads engineer should write a minute to the chief roads engineer upon completion of each stage of the project. In turn, he explained that the chief roads engineer would also write his own minute to the principal secretary through the principal planning officer.
However, in this scenario, he pointed out that payment vouchers were signed by the chief roads engineer.

The auditor general reported that the minute requesting for authority to make the payments lacked recommendation from the principal planning officer, and it was not approved by Mndawe.

countersign payment

Matsebula complained that the senior government officer was the overall project overseer and therefore did not have authority to make the payments. He emphasised that it was the principal secretary, in his capacity as the controlling officer, who had the authority to make the payments or “delegate that authority.”
“The principal secretary, as controlling officer, should countersign payment vouchers together with an accountant who represents the accountant general in the ministry,” he said.

The auditor general stated that Financial and Accounting Instruction No. 0813 (ii) required controlling officers to satisfy themselves that payments for supplies or work done under agreement or contract was in accordance with terms of the contract or agreement.

He said the controlling officers were there to ensure government paid for delivered supplies and work that was properly done. He reported that Mndawe concurred with his observation. He assured the ministry assured that it would implement corrective measures.

“I am concerned that the principal planning officer did not recommend payment of the above expenditure as expected and that the controlling officer did not authorise the requests to incur the expenditure as evidence that he certified the payments,” Matsebula said.

prerogative of his company

Contacted for comment, the officer said he did not have authority to address the matter in the absence of his supervisor, the current Principal Secretary, Khangeziwe Mabuza, who was reported to be out of the country as well. He hinted though that he inherited the authorisation of payments from his predecessors. He briefly mentioned that he was happy the contractors were paid for work that was done.

 Representatives of the companies that received a larger chuck of the money declined to comment on the matter. Sanele Mashwama, the Director of Pots Construction, said he would not comment on an internal issue. He said payment procedures were not the prerogative of his company.
Keith Thomas from AG Thomas said they would not comment on the matter. Thomas was shown the audit query and list of companies that, according to the auditor general, were paid against government procedure.

The other directors of companies, who did not disclose their names, also declined to comment on the matter.
MP Phila Buthelezi, the Chairman of the PAC, said they investigated high volumes of cases for the two previous financial years and would not remember if they addressed the payment of E15 million to 18 suppliers.

He said he would investigate the matter and probably give a concrete response next week.

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