The Treasury this week asked the Department of Social Development for an explanation of allegations of corruption and fraud after the closure of hundreds of poverty relief projects in Gauteng.
It has also emerged this week that the Gauteng Department of Social Services and Welfare has failed to spend millions of rands earmarked for poverty relief for this financial year.
Officials from the Department of Social Development and the provincial department were scheduled to meet this week to discuss the problems of the poverty relief schemes.
Mbulelo Musi, a spokesperson for the social development department, said the department would study the audit report and the Exit Strategy Report compiled by the provincial department. “We are hopeful that this meeting will ensure that we get to the bottom of this matter,” said Musi.
The development comes after a Mail & Guardian report last week revealing details of alleged corrupt practices by project leaders.
The provincial department has spent R50-million since 1997 to fund 336 community projects. However, the department has since shut down almost all of its projects, citing corruption, fraud and mismanagement of funds and lack of skills.
A dossier in the possession of the M&G says 85% of the projects did not achieve the department’s objectives because project leaders enriched themselves rather than the intended beneficiaries.
Logan Wort, spokesperson for the Treasury, this week confirmed that his department had sent a letter to Minister of Social Development Zola Skweyiya requesting an explanation.
“We need to know exactly what happened to the money and whether the provincial department has taken any action regarding the allegations,” said Wort.
He said it was unusual for the Treasury to intervene in provincial matters. “But in this case the department had to intervene because poverty alleviation money is allocated directly from the national Treasury.”
Wort said the Treasury would consider assisting with investigations if the provincial department requests it do so.
Last week MEC for Welfare Angie Motshekga said she was not aware of any investigation relating to the allegations. This was despite earlier confirmation by Mulalo Nemavhandu, manager of the provincial poverty programme, that the department had appointed a legal team to investigate the matter.
This week the M&G learned that Motshekga’s department has failed to utilise R23-million allocated for poverty alleviation for this financial year, despite the worsening poverty situation in the province.
Provincial spokesperson Panyaza Lesufi confirmed that the department had not utilised the allocated funds. “We needed to come up with a realistic strategy before we could use the money. After we conducted an audit last year we realised that the projects did not make any impact on poverty. So we couldn’t risk providing funds for such projects.”
Opposition parties in Gauteng have expressed shock over the department’s failure to utilise poverty alleviation funds.
“This is an absolute disgrace. What is even worse is that the department had just presented its annual report,” said Kate Prinsloo, the Democratic Alliance’s spokesperson on social services.
The New National Party said it was unfair for the provincial department not to spend the allocated poverty funds. “This shows that the department lacked proper planning to utilise the money,” said NNP spokesperson Vincent Thusi.