Minister of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation Lindiwe Sisulu says her department is determined to root out corruption and maladministration.

Sisulu was briefing the parliamentary portfolio committee on human settlements, water and sanitation last week, about the progress of the investigations and disciplinary processes the department is following to root out corruption.

“The auditor general is worried that there is no consequence management in certain departments, especially water and sanitation. And there are fears we can’t run the department efficiently. We need to fight this. We are establishing an entity that will help us to root out corruption, in order to stabilise the department,” Sisulu said. 

The 2019-20 financial year report suggests that a staggering R10-billion has been squandered in the department.

“The committee is dealing with reports of forensic investigations looking at corruption, fraud, maladministration, misconduct and irregular expenditure. We are also working with the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to finalise these investigations. It’s possible for us as a government to clean up our house without having to wait for the other arms of government to intervene.”

According to Sisulu, her department has also received a report of irregularities from the Special Investigating Unit that should have already been dealt with.

Sisulu said 97 officials are under investigation and over 24 have resigned on their own. However the department will follow criminal procedures to investigate those who have resigned. 

In December 2020, Sisulu established a departmental stabilisation committee headed by the former minister for social development, Susan Shabangu.

In her address, Shabangu said the committee had managed to finalise more than 100 of  166 disciplinary cases. Shabangu said they were left with about 47 cases which she committed to completing by the end of July.