Parliament� The Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) is discouraged that it had to again postpone its hearing with the Department of Public Works yesterday due to the fact that the department could not explain details on purchasing and maintenance of ministerial houses.

The committee could not get any information from the department on why such exorbitant amounts are being spent on purchasing and maintaining ministerial houses. There seems to be no manual that guides the department on how much should be spent for maintenance of these houses.

The committee has also observed that there is a breakdown of governance in the department, little accountability and lack of monitoring, which leads to a system that wastes a lot of money. Scopa is also concerned that the department is paying a lot of money in municipal services for these houses. In its next engagement with the department, the committee would like to gain a deeper understanding of their maintenance.

Source: Parliament of the Republic of South Africa