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E31 800 UNACCOUNTED FOR AT ST MARK’S PRIMARY - PAC FRAUD

11/04/2014 04:57:00 BY MUSA SIMELANE

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OBAMBA – The PAC unearthed some rot at St Mark’s Primary School, whereby the head teacher and school chairman, allegedly milked the school of over E30 000 in bogus claims for travelling expenses.
The head teacher in question is the retired Christopher Davies, and the school chairman is former Senator Masalekhaya Simelane.

This allegedly happened in 2011 and both are no longer in the school. The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), acting on information from the Auditor General’s (AG) Office Report for the 2013/14 financial year, found out that Simelane allegedly endorsed every claim by Davies supposedly for running school errands using his vehicle. Davies would claim for having travelled anything between 585km to 859km per month and Simelane, with hardly any qualms, would sign the school cheques. The payment was calculated at a rate of E3.00 per kilometre, which itself was not government approved. Money was allegedly paid out from the school funds to Davies such that he had allegedly claimed a total of E19 125 by the end of 2011.

Simelane, in his capacity as chairman, for the month of March 2011 alone allegedly opened the school cheque book to claim E1 464 for leaving his home in Mankayane to sign school cheques and attending meetings. Some of the claims had no details justifying them. His total claims for that year were allegedly E12 710. However, the PAC learnt that Davies could not be present for yesterday’s session because he was said to be indisposed.

Simelane was, therefore, left with the onus of clarifying to the committee about what really went on at the school.
“We were visited by government auditors that time and they found that some money left the school funds unaccounted for. I told them Davies forced things to happen his way in the school, including where claims were concerned. The auditors said we should let him have his way with the claims if he persists because as soon as he retired all the money would be deducted from his terminal benefits,” alleged Simelane.

The PAC did not buy Simelane’s version and it did not help that the AG Themba Nxumalo and Principal Secretary (PS) Patrick Muir in the Ministry of Education and Training, new nothing about allowing the school to give Davies money willy-nilly. Nxumalo expressed her astonishment and challenged Simelane to name the auditor who said that, but he could not.
Simelane told the committee that Davies was allegedly uncontrollable and even complained to Muir about it to bring him to order, but that did not help either until he retired. PAC Chairperson MP Thuli Dladla made it clear that the matter was still far from over as Simelane was expected to furnish the committee with documents supporting the claims.