Cape Town – The Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) resolved on Wednesday that matters that are not in dispute in the Road Accident Fund’s (RAF) audit report will be considered at its rescheduled meeting later this month.
This comes as legal proceedings are continuing in court between the RAF and Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke over the audit report for the 2020-21 financial year.
RAF wants the audit report reviewed and set aside after Maluleke issued a disclaimer of audit opinion in December 2021 following a dispute on the entity’s decision to change its accounting policy.
In her audit report, Maluleke said she was unable to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence for claims liabilities totalling R27.8 billion and claims expenditure amounting to R37.1 billion as disclosed in the financial statements.
She also said RAF has amended the accounting policy to recognise claims liabilities and claims expenditure.
RAF has defended its decision to change the accounting policy, saying it was a social benefit scheme and did not have insurance contracts.
On Wednesday, Scopa heard that legal proceedings were still continuing and that the Office of A-G only filed its answering affidavit last week in the North Gauteng High Court.
Scopa chairperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa said there were matters the committee could deal with in the disputed audit report on September 20.
“In the interim, we will make a determination of what we can and what we cannot deal with, and then we will take the matter forward in that sense,” he said.
“The audit report of the A-G holds in so far as Parliament is concerned and tabled. It provides sufficient basis to proceed,” he said.
Hlengwa also said the dispute between the two parties provided an opportunity for the management of audit outcomes not only for RAF and the office of A-G, but also for the national legislature.
“We will consider the option of friends of the court on certain aspects of this matter as a means of ensuring that we don’t have a runaway train of disputes and court actions on audit outcomes, and that they can be better handled in other areas.”
He feared that the review and setting aside of audit reports could be a new normal.
“Unless we create parameters, it will be a run-away train,” Hlengwa said.
Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula, who is RAF’s executive authority, said there was no question about the government and its entities accounting to Parliament.
“I wish to reiterate that we will be guided by the committee on the manner in which the committee intends to approach the RAF audit report tabled by the A-G.
“I also agree with the committee that areas that are not in dispute should be attended to in line with the commitment we have made to ensure accountability to Parliament,” Mbalula said.
Cape Times