In his latest report released on Wednesday‚ Auditor-General Kimi Makwetu said the lack of a paper trail resulted in him being unable to audit about R1.8bn worth of contracts or spending in the 2016-17 financial year.
Makwetu said 34 auditees could not provide him with evidence that awards had been made in accordance with the requirements of supply-chain management legislation. "The documentation either did not exist or could not be retrieved as a result of poor document management‚" Makwetu said.
KwaZulu-Natal‚ which recorded the highest irregular expenditure‚ also had the most severe documentation problem. The auditor-general could not audit about R894m that was reported to have been used by the province’s human settlements department.
However, the figure has decreased from the R1.2bn that could not be accounted for in the previous financial year.
The SABC was listed as one of the offenders who failed to provide documentation for R193m. Similarly Gauteng’s health department failed to provide the necessary documentation for how R46m was spent.
"Poor record management created an environment in which it was easy to commit and conceal improper or illegal conduct‚" Makwetu said.
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