Goniwe accused of mismanagement of party funds
Disgraced former ANC chief whip Mbulelo Goniwe’s alleged mismanagement has been cited as one of the reasons for the scandal in which several ANC parliamentary caucus officials were suspended this week. This week the ANC in parliament suspended six of its top managers in its administrative section for alleged fraud estimated to be around R5-million.
The six are former head of caucus Mathews Oliphant, his deputy Natalie Seymour, finance head Sandikazi Scwebu, human resources practitioner Ayanda Mashiyi, administration and ICT head Gwen Nelson, and Shantal Lambrechts.
Last year the caucus engaged the auditing firm SizweNtsaluba to look at weaknesses in the party’s financial systems.
A senior MP told the Sunday Times that the auditors’ report had exposed fraud and misappropriation of funds .
The Sunday Times has reliably learnt that a huge chunk of the money was siphoned off in what several sources said was a “ghost internship programme”.
Following the auditors’ report, presented on June 19, the ANC caucus appointed a team of MPs to review “financial systems pertaining to the caucus and constituency funds with a view of strengthening them and reducing the risks” .
The five MPs are Louisa Mabe, Barbara Hogan, Arthur Moloto, Pierre Gerber and Gerhard Koornhof.
A report from this week’s ANC caucus meeting confirms that the team was appointed to take the findings and recommendations of the auditors further “in an overall drive to improve the financial management systems of caucus”.
The caucus recommended introducing and implementing comprehensive financial policies on procurement, remuneration, the leasing of constituency offices, outreach programmes and asset management.
In July, the caucus brought in Mzwandile Radebe from the party’s Luthuli House headquarters as chief of staff and head of caucus. Several staff said an e-mail had been sent early in July informing them that auditors would come to verify their identities. Staff were asked for their identity documents by the auditors.
One of the suspended six told the Sunday Times this week that they could not be held solely responsible. The suspended manager said: “It is not management weakness. We were just implementing the instructions of the chief whip. As managers we did not have the powers to appoint staff. The chief whip retained the power to appoint.”
The manager said Goniwe had brought in people without proper qualifications and had given instructions that they be given jobs.
“MPs will just tell us they have appointed people in their constituency offices and instruct us to put them on the payroll.”
Goniwe had appointed a company, Edu-Solutions, to be responsible for all caucus procurement.
The allegations against Goniwe were corroborated by a senior MP and another senior staff member. The MP said: “Goniwe is the source of all these problems. He ran the caucus like his own spaza shop.”
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