Download logo
The Chairperson of the committee, Mr Albert Mncwango, noted that the committee called this urgent meeting because it was concerned about the department's failure to submit its AFS to the AGSA within the deadline set by the Public Finance Management Act. Mr Mncwango noted that following today’s meeting, the committee is clear that this is not an administrative oversight or a mere procedural lapse. “It is a serious failure of governance and accountability,” he said.
According to the PFMA, annual financial statements must be submitted to the Auditor-General and the relevant Treasury within two months of the end of the financial year, and the Act also requires that the department’s annual report, financial statements and the Auditor-General’s audit report be tabled in Parliament. The AGSA has informed the committee that the audit could not proceed because the department failed to submit the required financial statements.
The committee today insisted on answers. Among the questions were why the department failed to submit its statements on time, when the Minister and the Director-General, as accounting officer, became aware that the deadline would not be met, and what failures within the department led to this situation. The committee also probed what actions the relevant officials, including the Director-General, the Chief Financial Officer, Internal Audit and the Audit Committee took to meet the deadline. It also insisted on knowing what interventions the Executive Authority took and when the matter will be resolved.
The Chairperson said the non-submission was unacceptable. “We are extremely troubled by the implications of this failure. Without audited financial statements, the committee cannot properly assess expenditure, performance, audit outcomes or the use of public resources. We cannot effectively fulfil our constitutional responsibilities, nor can we properly complete our assessment for the 2026 Budgetary Review and Recommendations Report (BRRR), including making fully informed recommendations to the Minister of Finance,” said Mr Mncwango.
He said this failure also weakens public confidence in the department’s ability to account for the resources entrusted to it. “The committee has already expressed the view that there appears to have been a breach of the PFMA. The remaining question is whether this matter may also constitute financial misconduct and whether the provisions of section 81 of the PFMA should be considered,” the Chairperson said.
The committee is now considering obtaining legal advice on its options in dealing with the matter.
According to the department, some aspects of the restructuring that resulted in the former Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development being separated into the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Land Reform and Rural Development, including issues relating to the transfer of assets, contributed to the delay in the department submitting the AFS on time. The department told the committee that it had submitted the financial statements yesterday.
The committee asked the department to provide proof of submission and, in the meantime, will determine how it will consider the audited statements once the audit is completed to meet the BRRR process timelines.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of South Africa: The Parliament.
This website uses cookies.
