Ghost workers paid R6m

REPORT: DEPT CALLS 'INTENTIONAL CORRUPTION' A MISTAKE – EXPERTS

- Masoka Dube

Mpumalanga department of education officials involved in ghost employee payments, which resulted in more than R6 million in irregular expenditure, must be arrested, say experts.

The payment scandal was revealed in a recent auditor-general's (AG) report. The department's annual report also confirmed that R6 408 775 in salaries were paid to non-existing employees in the previous financial year.

According to the report, the payments were made to former employees who had died and others no longer employed by the department.

“Some officials in the department failed to ensure the department's financial management and internal control systems are carried out within their areas of responsibility and in line with Section 45(a) of the Public Finance Management Act.

“These officials failed to make sure human resources was notified timeously to stop salaries to employees that left the department or were deceased.