Directors-general flout disclosure legislation

Directors-general and senior managers in the departments of Higher Education and Training, Economic Development, Communications and Correctional Services have not disclosed their private financial interests as required by law.

This is according to a presentation by the Public Service Commission on progress made in ensuring that all senior managers have filled in and submitted compulsory financial disclosure forms.

But two of the departments said the commission is mistaken.

The deadline for submissionwas May 31. Parliament now wants ministers in charge of the four departments to take action.

Public Service Commission deputy director-general of integrity and anti-corruption Dovhani Mamphiswana said "not even a single form" had been submitted by the four departments.

Mamphiswana said the commission had "constantly reminded" ministries about the deadline - even placing adverts in the media - and asked the relevant ministers to discipline those senior managers who had not met the deadline.

The commission said it was not aware of senior government officials who had been disciplined because of non-compliance.

Committee chairman Joyce Moloi-Moropa said: "We are going to interrogate the wrongdoers.

''We believe along the way wrongdoers will be punished accordingly," she said.

Senior government managers have for the past 10 years been obliged to fill in the forms to establish whether they owned shares in companies doing business with the government, or if they were involved in other conflicts of interest.

Only 67% of the 8622 senior managers met the deadline this year.

The Western Cape was the only province that submitted all its forms on time.

Angry ANC and DA MPs said they would come down hard on the four errant ministries.

"It was going to be very important to name the [directors-general] who did not comply. Subordinates can only take this process seriously if their heads do," said ANC MP Mduduzi Manana.

The DA's Geordin Hill-Lewis said a "worst offenders' list" should be published.

ANC MP Eric Nyekemba said: "If just filling in the forms is difficult, what about the actual responsibilities they are entrusted with?"

But the Higher Education department and Training and Economic Development department disputed Mamphiswana's statement.

Lulama Mbobo, Deputy Director-General for corporate services in the Department of Higher Education and Training, said the forms were filed on time but "were unfortunately not routed on time to the commission due to miscommunication. They have since been re-routed".

Economic Development spokes-man Zubeida Jaffer said as far as she was aware, all forms had been filed.

The Department of Correctional Services did not respond to questions.

The Department of Communications has apologised for the delay.