On Monday, 1 October 2012, the North West Provincial Legislature’s Standing Committee on Provincial Public Accounts (SCOPA) served summons to the Ratlou Local Municipality Mayor, Cllr. Phenyo Victor Mance, Municipal Public Accounts Chairperson, Galaletsang Boikanyo, Chief Financial Officer, Brenda Pulane Mabe, and Municpal Manager, Koketso Floyd Lekomanyane, to appear before the Committee on Thursday 11 October at the Legislature Committee Room 2.
The Committee had called the municipality to come and account several times but the municipality did not attend those meetings. They were first called on June 6, 2012, to come and account as to why they did not submit their financial statements with all the municipalities in the province, but Ratlou did not come and no reason or apology was sent to the Committee.
They were then called again on June 14, but they still did not come. Again on the 14th August 2012, when the Committee called the Department of Local Government and Traditional Affairs, the Department of Finance, mayors, councillors and management of all municipalities in the province to account on the Audit Outcomes of the financial year 2011/12, Ratlou local municipality did not come.
Section 14 of the Powers, Privileges and Immunities of Parliament and Provincial Legislatures Act, 2004 (Act No 24 of 2004) hereinafter referred to as “the Act” read with Section 115(a) of the Constitution, further read with the North West Provincial Legislature Rule 60(3) gives the Legislature powers to summon people to appear before it.
Chairperson of the Committee, Hon. Hlomane Chauke, said there is a trend that is starting in the province where people that have been invited to appear before the Legislature Committees tend to ignore the invite.
“In terms of Legislature Rules, no one is above the law, when the Legislature calls you to account before it, you should come, the action we are taking will serve as a lesson to all those that do not respect the law.
“The Legislature will use the powers bestowed upon it by the Constitution to foster accountability in the province. This is taxpayers’ money and those that have been entrusted to make sure that there is service delivery must ensure that they deliver and are able to account on how they have spent it,” said Hon. Chauke.
The meeting will be attended by the Auditor General’s office (AG), the Department of Local Government, Department of Finance, the Portfolio Committee on Local Government and Traditional Affairs.
Failure to attend the meeting by the people, who have been summoned, is a criminal offence, punishable upon conviction, by a fine and imprisonment as contemplated in Section 17 of the Act.
All media is invited to attend the meeting. For more information contact:
Namhla Luhabe
Cell: 079 527 0628
E-mail: namhla@nwpl.org.za
Standing Committee on Provincial Public Accounts (SCOPA) Summon Ratlou Local Municipality Mayor, Municipal Manager, CFO and MPAC Chairperson to Appear Before the Committee
Province
