Lifestyle audit for workers
8 February 2010, 17:09
By Arthi Sanpath
High-flying Durban city employees will have to account for their snazzy cars, flashy lifestyles and newfound wealth in a new "lifestyle audit" being undertaken to root out rogues fleecing the city of millions of rands.
The audit, confirmed yesterday by municipal manager Michael Sutcliffe, will also target employees whose family members benefit from lucrative city tenders.
It comes in the wake of revelations by the Auditor-General that the city lost more than R100-million through fraud and corruption last year. Contracts valued at a further R680 million had "deviated" from normal procedures.
It is not clear if the audit will look at the R300-million tender awarded to Shaun Mpisane's company, Zikhulise Cleaning, Maintenance and Transport, to build houses in Umlazi.
Last year, Sutcliffe said there was nothing criminal about the wealth and assets that had been amassed by Mpisane's husband, S'bu, at the time an eThekwini Metro policeman.
S'bu Mpisane earned R15 000 a month but lived in a mansion in La Lucia and drove flashy sports cars. He later resigned from the Metro police.
The city is currently studying a National Home Builders Registration Council report (NHBRC) after visiting the Umlazi site early this month.
Sutcliffe said last year that employees first needed to declare their outside interests and then request permission to keep those interests.
"A declaration alone does not get you out of the problem. Permission needs to be granted by the municipal manager," Sutcliffe said.
The city dismissed more than 36 employees last year for fraud and theft. Of them 17 were metro officers who were given the boot for dishonesty, corruption, bribery or misappropriation of funds.
Sutcliffe promised to do his best to toss out the city's rotten apples.
"People always find ways to circumnavigate the system, but now we will be able to identify who the rogues are," he said.
The city will look at what cars senior staff, including managers, are driving, the lifestyles they lead, their business interests and whether officials are living beyond their means.
Fraudulent transactions at the uShaka Marine World and the International Convention Centre cost the city almost R3,5-million in 2009.
The city is also probing how contracts worth R100-million had been awarded to spouses, children or parents of senior city officials, as well as 13 cases of fraud, amounting to R48,5-million, relating to noncompliance with its supply chain management policy.
In a recent SAfm radio debate, Sutcliffe said he would like to introduce legislation that barred officials from being involved in businesses or business enterprises.
City employees were fired last year for a range of offences, mainly for fraud and theft.
Of the others fired:
16 had claimed overtime pay for hours they had not worked;
one removed property of a contractor from a site without permission;
one sold part of the council's fuel supply for personal gain;
one falsified documents; and
17 were police members who had accepted bribes from the public.
Titus Malaza, deputy head of the city's metro police, said that while the public complained that some policemen or women were asking for bribes to quash fines, it was difficult to prove this.
"We have to find the money on them," he said.
"And people need to report the instances where they are asked for a bribe."
High-flying Durban city employees will have to account for their snazzy cars, flashy lifestyles and newfound wealth in a new "lifestyle audit" being undertaken to root out rogues fleecing the city of millions of rands.
The audit, confirmed yesterday by municipal manager Michael Sutcliffe, will also target employees whose family members benefit from lucrative city tenders.
It comes in the wake of revelations by the Auditor-General that the city lost more than R100-million through fraud and corruption last year. Contracts valued at a further R680 million had "deviated" from normal procedures.
It is not clear if the audit will look at the R300-million tender awarded to Shaun Mpisane's company, Zikhulise Cleaning, Maintenance and Transport, to build houses in Umlazi.
Last year, Sutcliffe said there was nothing criminal about the wealth and assets that had been amassed by Mpisane's husband, S'bu, at the time an eThekwini Metro policeman.
S'bu Mpisane earned R15 000 a month but lived in a mansion in La Lucia and drove flashy sports cars. He later resigned from the Metro police.
The city is currently studying a National Home Builders Registration Council report (NHBRC) after visiting the Umlazi site early this month.
Sutcliffe said last year that employees first needed to declare their outside interests and then request permission to keep those interests.
"A declaration alone does not get you out of the problem. Permission needs to be granted by the municipal manager," Sutcliffe said.
The city dismissed more than 36 employees last year for fraud and theft. Of them 17 were metro officers who were given the boot for dishonesty, corruption, bribery or misappropriation of funds.
Sutcliffe promised to do his best to toss out the city's rotten apples.
"People always find ways to circumnavigate the system, but now we will be able to identify who the rogues are," he said.
The city will look at what cars senior staff, including managers, are driving, the lifestyles they lead, their business interests and whether officials are living beyond their means.
Fraudulent transactions at the uShaka Marine World and the International Convention Centre cost the city almost R3,5-million in 2009.
The city is also probing how contracts worth R100-million had been awarded to spouses, children or parents of senior city officials, as well as 13 cases of fraud, amounting to R48,5-million, relating to noncompliance with its supply chain management policy.
In a recent SAfm radio debate, Sutcliffe said he would like to introduce legislation that barred officials from being involved in businesses or business enterprises.
City employees were fired last year for a range of offences, mainly for fraud and theft.
Of the others fired:
Titus Malaza, deputy head of the city's metro police, said that while the public complained that some policemen or women were asking for bribes to quash fines, it was difficult to prove this.
"We have to find the money on them," he said.
"And people need to report the instances where they are asked for a bribe."
- This article was originally published on page 1 of The Daily News on February 08, 2010
