Ntsebeza Inquiry delayed yet again

The Ntsebeza Inquiry into the conduct of former KPMG employees ground to a halt again on Thursday following a two-week postponement.

The inquiry‚ headed by advocate Dumisa Ntsebeza‚ was instituted by the South African Institute of Chartered Accountants (SAICA) and is looking into whether any individuals who are members of SAICA contravened the code of conduct of SAICA in their work for KPMG on the Gupta family accounts and the so-called SARS report.

The inquiry heard evidence from a third individual on the SAICA code of conduct‚ Ulrich Schackermann‚ who dealt with the guidelines of ethical behaviour the code sets out for chartered accountants who are members of SAICA. SAICA membership is not compulsory.

The inquiry was due to hear evidence from the first of five complainants‚ Alex Richter‚ but counsel for law firm ENS Africa Johan Smit raised concerns over whether or not Richter’s evidence fell within the ambit of the terms of reference of the inquiry.

Smit also raised concerns over a second submission his clients had made in response to Richter’s complaint‚ which seemingly had not made its way into the evidence bundles shared with the panel.

In the ensuing debate over points raised by Smit‚ Richter’s evidence was not heard. He will likely be called to give evidence on Monday.

TimesLIVE understands that Richter’s complaint is based on events surrounding the conduct of two KPMG employees in dealings with his deceased father’s estate.

The inquiry is set to resume on Friday and is scheduled to hear evidence from Dr Elmarie Buys‚ whose complaint deals with the conduct of two KPMG employees who compiled a report that led to her suspension from the Department of Science and Technology.

The other complaints that will form part of the inquiry are by SARS‚ former KPMG director Mooketsi Motsisi and former Randgold director Johan Blersch.

TimesLIVE reported on Thursday that the inquiry is expecting SARS commissioner Tom Moyane to give evidence next week.