DA member of the provincial legislature, David Janse van Vuuren, says at most due process is not followed when issuing tenders in municipalities and provincial departments. 

His statement comes ahead of today's Provincial Adjustment Budget for the 2021/22 Financial Year by the MEC for Finance, Gadija Brown, where she is set to give thorough details on the financial outlook of the province. Van Vuuren says there are already departments that are sitting with unauthorised expenditures.

MEC Brown’s budget comes amidst news that several municipalities in the province continuously fail to honour their debts, running into millions owed to service providers such as BloemWater, and also failing to pay workers' pension fund contributions.

Her budget will be in the spotlight since the national treasury department is expected to distribute the national equitable share to various municipalities across the country around December.

OFM News previously reported that the head of the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), Andy Mothibi, in February 2021 highlighted that several investigations involving officials from the Free State Treasury were underway, and have since made a referral to the National Prosecuting Authority over one Senior Manager within the Provincial Treasury.

He said a total of 11 fraud and corruption allegations relating to Personal Protective Equipment we're being probed in the Free State.

OFM News