STOP the waste and corruption, fix the pipes and taps, and hundreds of billions of rand will become available to grow the economy, expand infrastructure, create jobs, deliver dignified services to all and prevent dangerous cuts to education and housing.
And this can be achieved without raising taxes by a cent or relying on foreign investment.
The auditor-general recently reported to parliament that R124 billion in government spending over the last five years must be classified as unauthorised, fruitless, and wasteful. Including Prasa and other state entities, this figure rises to about R135 billion. This is likely to be a significant underestimation.
The DA states in a media release: “A comprehensive analysis conducted by the DA has uncovered that ministerial departments, state-owned enterprises, and various entities under the ANC’s administration collectively incurred a staggering R40 billion in fruitless, wasteful, irregular, and unauthorized expenditures in the 2022/23 financial year alone.”
The party adds that this amount is extremely conservative as it excludes seven state departments and 69 state entities that have not yet submitted their annual reports.
A specialist researching state waste, who has done work for Outa and Corruption Watch, estimates that the actual amount wasted over the past five years is likely to exceed R300 billion when adding provincial and local governments' “fruitless and wasteful expenditure” (FWE) alongside corruption, inefficiency, the deployment of incompetent cadres and poor management.
The researcher, who wishes to remain anonymous due to the nature of their work, says South Africans should not be too concerned about amounts classified as irregular unauthorised, as they are sometimes spent on good projects, albeit without following all protocols.
“It’s the money that is wasted, stolen, or handed out to friends and connections that should worry us. The indifference of ministers, department heads and provincial and local managers should make us furious.”
According to the auditor-general, fruitless and wasteful spending by national ministerial departments alone increased from R231,6 million in 2018/19 to R423,2 million in 2022/23.
The latest Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency International shows that South Africa has slipped towards the bottom of the list of countries, scoring 41 out of 100 points – below the international average and more corrupt than African countries such as Botswana, Rwanda, Namibia, Benin, Ghana, Senegal and Burkina Faso.
Several economists have calculated that South Africa’s economy could grow at least one percentage point faster if most corruption were eradicated.
The researcher I spoke to is working on a large project to eventually provide a complete picture of wasted government funds. They can already identify several areas where money is drained:
My source says the severe water crisis in South Africa is a metaphor for the waste that has become commonplace and advised me to research it further.
I did, because I recall mentioning in my last book, A Rumour of Spring, the story of the Middle Vaiterna Dam, built in 2011 at enormous cost and disruption in India to supply Mumbai with 455 million litres per day. Researchers later found that if the city had simply repaired its pipeline leaks, it would have had more than 600 million litres per day available.
The expensive new dam was entirely unnecessary. The solution was much simpler and cheaper.
The picture in South Africa is extremely disturbing.
More than four out of every 10 litres of purified water leaks from pipes and taps into the ground.
Meanwhile, the national government plans to build more dams to solve the crisis, including dams in neighbouring Lesotho.
The department of water affairs and sanitation uses the concept of “non-revenue water”, which includes water that is stolen or otherwise not paid for. Together with leaks (40.8%), it accounts for 47.7% of all potable water, according to government data.
Durban, the eThekwini metro where thousands are without water today, is the biggest offender, with 58,3% non-revenue water. Johannesburg stands at 48,2%, Nelson Mandela Bay at 48%, Mangaung at 46,4%, Tshwane at 32,6% and Cape Town at 29,4%.
On a provincial level, the Western Cape performs best, at 26,9%. Gauteng comes in at 46,4%, the Northern Cape at 48,5%, the Eastern Cape at 50,5%, Limpopo at 51,6%, North West at 52,1%, and Mpumalanga at 58,4%.
The ANC government announced a “war on leaks” ten years ago, but the wastage of purified water has since only increased.
The lost water not only means residents lack reliable access to drinking water, but it also deprives local authorities of a significant source of revenue.
South Africa does not need higher taxes, IMF loans, or grandiose plans to grow and improve for its people. We just need to stop wasting existing resources.
We can only hope that cabinet members from the DA, IFP, VF+ and PA will raise their voices on this issue.
We don't need new dams; we just need to fix the pipes and taps.
♦ VWB ♦
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Max du Preez is the editor-in-chief of Vrye Weekblad. He was the founding editor of the original Vrye Weekblad.
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