The office of the auditor-general (AGSA) has rubbished claims of corruption and impropriety against its boss, Tsakani Maluleke, saying an independent legal review by a top law firm has already found them to be baseless.
In a letter to the parliamentary standing committee on the auditor-general (Scoag), the AGSA’s now-suspended chief people officer Mlungisi Mabaso claimed that while she was deputy auditor-general, Maluleke “approved a payment of R575,358 into the bank account of the late former AG Kimi Makwetu to reimburse him for his bond transfer costs”, “irregularly increased Makwetu’s salary” and tried to influence him to appoint her personal coach’s company for an R11m “leadership alignment programme”.
But on Thursday morning, the AGSA announced that two independent legal reviews had been conducted into the claims and Mabaso's conduct, one which found the allegations against Maluleke to be baseless and the other that prompted a disciplinary process against Mabaso.
Maluleke, AGSA said in the statement, asked for the reviews after a meeting with Mabaso in June in which he accused her of “corrupt, unprofessional and unethical conduct” in her role as auditor-general and in her previous job as deputy, and demanded a mutual separation agreement and financial settlement “in exchange for him not exposing allegations to the public”.
AGSA said Maluleke then promptly reported Mabaso’s conduct and his allegations to her deputy and AGSA accounting officer Vonani Chauke, who then “instituted an independent legal review of the two matters ... conducted by Bowmans, a law firm”.
The statement said Maluleke and Chauke also briefed AGSA’s executive committee and audit committees as well as Scoag on the allegations and Mabaso’s conduct “and the steps the auditor-general had initiated to ensure that these were both independently and adequately investigated”.
“The legal opinion into the legality of the transactions and decisions made by Maluleke has since been concluded and has found no merit in the allegations that [her] conduct amounted to corruption or unprofessional, unethical behaviour.
“While the investigation into the conduct of [Mabaso] has led to charges of gross misconduct against him and a disciplinary process, [Mabaso] is on precautionary suspension until the completion of the disciplinary inquiry, which will be chaired by an independent senior counsel appointed for this purpose.
“[Mabaso] is expected to appear before the disciplinary committee before the end of September 2022.”
Chauke said there are “standard procedures through which staff (or the public) can raise any good faith concerns about AGSA decision-making”.
“We believe process governance and transparency are critical to rebuilding trust and restoring good governance within our public institutions. The AGSA is a vital part of the country’s governance framework. So whenever concerns are raised, we give each matter the appropriate consideration, investigate as necessary, follow due process and communicate our findings,” he said.
Maluleke said: “The allegations made are of a serious nature and should not be taken lightly. We have adopted a stance that if we are to add value to strengthen the systems of integrity, transparency, accountability and performance in public institutions, we must hold ourselves to the same standards or better yet, lead by example in demonstrating an ongoing commitment to integrity, transparency, accountability and performance.
“This does not mean we are infallible, but it means we must be accountable and open to learning and correction. We will study the report and consider any recommendations of strengthening our processes and governance. I remain focused on my constitutional mandate and will continue to execute it without fear or favour.”
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