The ghost of August’s protests in Swellendam is one of the reasons for the delay in the completion of the municipality’s audit report. 

Swellendam is among several Western Cape municipalities whose audit reports have been delayed owing to various challenges including issues with risk and compliance. 

The Office of the Auditor General (AGSA) has outlined reasons for the delays in submitting the audit reports of several Western Cape municipalities for the 2022/2023 financial year. According to the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA), the AG is mandated to audit financial statements and submit an audit report on those statements within three months of receipt of them. The due date for submitting the legislated statements was 31 August 2o23. 

This information is contained in letters to the provincial legislature submitted by the AG, which were tabled in the legislature’s Announcements, Tabling and Committee report, the legislature’s record of work. Along with a letter to Speaker of the legislature, Daylin Mitchell, from the AG’s Sangeeta Kallen, business unit leader for the Western Cape, explaining the late submissions, there are letters explaining the delays in submitting the audit reports on the financial statements for the Swellendam, Kannaland, Overstrand, Cederberg, Matzikama and Laingsburg local municipalities. The Central Karoo District Municipality audit report has also been delayed. 

The reports were supposed to be completed by 30 November. 

Arson to blame for Swellendam delay 

According to the letter sent to the Swellendam municipality from the AG’s office, which Daily Maverick has seen, the delay is linked to the protests in August and September. Kallen writes in her letter to the municipality that delays are anticipated in the submission of audit evidence and support. 

“Swellendam municipality submitted their financial statements on 30 September following an act of arson during community protest action resulting in significant damage to the main municipal building, which housed the finance department,” the letter reads. 

In August, the municipal building was set alight during a service delivery protest over issues such as the provision of electricity. 

Read more in Daily Maverick: A day of chaos – Swellendam protesters torch municipal offices over ‘racism’, service delivery neglect

Swellendam protesters demand end to indigent policy, improved services — DA touts political meddling

Divided and riven with discontent – a deep dive into Swellendam

High court grants interdict preventing further unlawful Swellendam protests

According to the AG’s letter, its office will be closed between 14 December and 7 January 2024, reducing available days within the three-month audit period. 

“Therefore, the Auditor-General of South Africa will endeavour to finalise your audit report by 31 January 2024, to enable the completion of the necessary oversight processes,” Kallen writes. 

In the 2021/2022 financial year, Swellendam received a clean audit. 

Read more in Daily Maverick: Cape Town and Prince Albert pave the way with clean audits but problems persist in Beaufort West, Laingsburg and Kannaland 

Matzikama and Overstrand

Matzikama also received a letter that its audit report would not be issued by 30 November. Over recent months, the municipality has been under fire for a water crisis. 

The AG’s office said the delay was due to matters identified during the audit process and communicated to the accounting officer. Other issues raised include internal quality control and review processes. The aim was to have the audit completed by 8 December. 

The AG highlighted the same reason for the delay for Overstrand municipality, with the same completion date. 

Cederberg and Central Karoo 

The AG’s letter to the Central Karoo District Municipality – which often made headlines during the 2022–2023 year-long mayorship of Gayton Mckenzie – gives the completion date for the audit report as 4 December. The reason for the delay, according to letters from Kallen to the municipality, is “due to internal quality control and review processes to ensure that risks identified during the audit process [are] adequately addressed have delayed the audit sign”.

This is the same reason given for the delay of the audit report for Cederberg (Lambert’s Bay and Clanwilliam) municipality. Kallen’s letter indicates that the municipality’s report would was due to be completed by mid-December. 

More bad news from Kannaland and Laingsburg 

Laingsburg’s audit has also been delayed. In the 2021/2022 audit outcomes, the small municipality along the N1 highway received an “adverse” audit opinion. 

According to Kallen’s letter to the municipality, the audit report for Laingsburg was supposed to be issued by 1 December. The reason for the delay is given as “the adverse audit opinion expressed in the prior year, and the extent of misstatements identified in the current year has placed significant constraints on capacity at the municipality to timeous respond to the completion of the audit”. 

The letter adds: “The delay in audit will allow the municipality to use its current capacity to respond to findings regarding misstatements identified and the related information requests to conclude the audit.” 

The AGSA will, however, endeavour to finalise the municipality’s audit report by 14 December, the letter reads. 

Kannaland – a municipality known for its bad audit figures, poor service delivery and dodgy appointments – submitted its financial statements late. Instead of submitting on 31 August, the municipality only submitted financial statements on 2 October, almost two months later. 

According to a letter from Kallen, “at the time of the above submission resources were already allocated and committed to other MFMA audits”. 

“Furthermore a decision was taken by the Auditor-General of South Africa to delay the execution of the audit to facilitate the use of internal resources to ensure that the complexities associated with the audit are adequately addressed,” the letter adds. 

The AGSA aims to complete Kannaland’s audit report by 31 March 2024. DM