THE newly appointed chairperson of Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa), New National Party MP Francois Beukman, put on a brave face amid scepticism over his abilities to get the controversy-wracked watchdog over government spending back on track.
Beukman was on Wednesday nominated by the African National Congress as Scopa chair in the first appointment in terms of last year’s NNP-ANC cooperation agreement, which promised accommodation at all levels of government.
“It’s a sad day for democratic practice,” said Democratic Alliance chief whip Douglas Gibson. The public accounts committee chairperson is traditionally a member of the opposition, “not the opposition chosen by government”, he said.
The United Democratic Front and African Christian Democratic Party were likewise disappointed.
Beukman said he wanted to restore trust and a return to consensus decision-making, but refused to be drawn into details. “In the end it must be a team effort. I must get members on board.”
Beukman has started meeting individual committee members in an effort to heal the party political rifts triggered by Scopa’s attempts to exercise oversight over government’s arms procurement package last year. Party politicking over the controversial investigation of the multi-billion arms deal broke the usual decision-by-consensus operation.
Earlier this year the previous chairperson, Inkatha Freedom Party MP Gavin Woods, resigned citing frustration over the committee’s politicisation and executive interference.
Beukman, who has replaced the temporary chairperson, ANC MP Vincent Smith, appointed following Woods’s resignation, plans further meetings with political parties and the auditor general next week.
NNP leader Marthinus van Schalkwyk said Beukman had two instructions: to restore Scopa’s credibility and to “act fearlessly and independently” to ensure the committee is the “taxpayers’ watchdog”.