Ghost employees cost N West billions

North West premier Supra Mahumapelo. Photo: Itumeleng English

North West premier Supra Mahumapelo. Photo: Itumeleng English

Published Sep 2, 2015

Share

Rustenburg - At least 36 000 ghost employees have been drawing a combined amount of R19 billion in salaries in the North West province, the ANC in the province said on Wednesday.

“These ghost employees have been undetected and exhausting the slim annual salary budget,” said provincial secretary Dakota Legoete.

“The revelation of this unlawful salary diversion to no existing civil servants followed the investigations led by Comrade Supra Mahumapelo who instructed the verification of every government employee in the province’s salary payment system.”

North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo revealed the figure of 36 000 ghost workers at a SCOPA meeting earlier on Wednesday.

Legoete said Mahumapelo’s revelations would save the North West provincial government millions of rand.

The Democratic Alliance reacted with shock the revelations of the ghost workers.

“Ghost officials are not new to the North West provincial government – in 2008 millions of rands was spent on consultants to develop a system that was supposed to eradicate the problem. Now, only 7 years later, it seems that was a fruitless exercise and a waste of taxpayers’ money, which must be condemned as throwing good money after bad,” said caucus leader Chris Hattingh.

Hattingh said it was shocking and unacceptable that ghost workers received pension benefits and medical aid funds.

“North West has become notorious for over-expenditure on personnel budgets – especially in the departments of education and health. These two departments are subsequently also some of the worst performing departments in the province and are currently under financial administration,” he said.

He said the DA would request that Mahumapelo table the outcomes and effects of the 2008 program to root out ghost workers, so that the legislature could interrogate the millions of rand spent on the clearly failed intervention.

ANA

Related Topics: