24 March 2006
The Committee on Ethics and Members Interests has noted the
Auditor-Generalâs report and maintains that it does not appear that there are
any transgressions and breaches by Members of Parliament. However, the
committee has requested additional information on certain cases of the alleged
non-disclosure.
The Committee would also like to address the misrepresentation of the
Auditorâs Reports suggesting a violation of the Parliamentary Code of Conduct
by senior members of the executive. The Committee would further like to
reiterate some of the critical assertions from the Auditor-Generalâs report,
which have been systemically ignored in the coverage of this matter thereby
creating an impression of non-compliance by Members of Parliament.
The Committee would like to re-emphasise the following statements from the
Auditor-Generalâs report, which should be taken into consideration by the media
in reportage on the issue.
* The Auditor-General did not verify the accuracy and completeness of the
Companies and Intellectual Property Registration Office (CIPRO) and the Persal
database that were used while compiling exception reports.
* The report also found that the CIPRO database of Directors and Members had
not been updated timeously as the database still indicates that certain
Ministers and Deputy Ministers are members or directors of companies or Close
Corporations (CCs) although they had resigned and terminated their
directorship.
The Committee has in the past, found that non-disclosure of non-profit
organisations does not constitute a breach, as these are not personal financial
interests of the Members, nor do they receive any remuneration or financial
benefits.
Enquiries:
Lewellyn Landers
Cell: 083 463 4789
Issued by: Chairperson of the Joint Committee on Ethics and Members
Interests â SA Parliament
24 March 2006
