Failed lifestyle audits: Lesufi cracks whip

GAUTENG Premier Panyaza Lesufi has reaffirmed his administration's commitment to integrity, transparency, and accountability by acting on the results of lifestyle audits conducted across senior provincial officials.

- HOPE NTANZI

This follows his earlier vow to remove all provincial department heads implicated in unethical conduct, starting with those entrenched in supply chain management.

Lesufi said the intention is to restore public trust and purge corruption from government ranks. The crackdown was triggered by a report from the Gauteng Ethics Advisory Council, which exposed a disturbing pattern of senior officials living lavish lifestyles far beyond what their official earnings would allow.

"Ethics must not only be verified, they must be lived," he said. By October 2024, 750 senior managers were in the provincial administration, and 732 of them had completed or were undergoing intensive vetting, reaching a 98% compliance rate. Lesufi stressed that vetting alone isn’t enough to ensure ethical conduct.

Yesterday, during a media briefing, Lesufi announced the removal of three Heads of Department (HODs) after they failed their lifestyle audits for the second time. The audits, conducted by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), revealed that 37% of senior officials assessed were either high-risk or failed to satisfactorily explain their finances.