Cape Town - A legal opinion has dashed Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele’s hopes of the State Security Agency (SSA) skipping a Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) appearance over a standing Cabinet resolution to vet government officials.
Gungubele recently snubbed a Scopa sitting where the spooks were supposed to account for the vetting process of state-owned entities’ executives and their supply chain management officials, particularly at Eskom.
At the time the resolution was issued in 2014, the SSA fell under the State Security Ministry, which now falls in the ambit of the Presidency.
The Cabinet resolved that spooks vet officials, but after back and forth exchanges over the years between Scopa and SSA’s political heads, Gungubele’s department snubbed a Scopa appearance at the 11th hour last week.
Echoing SSA’s argument to duck the Scopa appearance, SSA spokesperson Mava Scott recently told the Cape Argus that the Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence (JSCI) was the only oversight committee in Parliament that handles intelligence affairs “of any nature”.
Dumped by the SSA just hours before their scheduled appearance last Tuesday, Scopa chairperson and IFP MP Mkhuleko Hlengwa requested a legal opinion.
Chief parliamentary legal adviser Zuraya Adhikarie’s legal opinion, delivered yesterday morning, said the SSA must appear before Scopa.
“Scopa is empowered by law to request the update on the vetting of employees of SOEs. This is a matter that pertains to a range of committees, including the public enterprises committee,” Adhikarie’s legal opinion said.
“To argue that such update is part of accountability to the JSCI, as the minister is doing, could lead to a situation that is inconsistent with the Constitution and the requirement to maintain oversight of all organs of state.”
Adhikarie said should Godongwana refuse to report to Scopa, Hlengwa may drag him to Parliament through summons to provide the required information.
Adhikarie said while the accountability for financial management of the SSA may reside with the JSCI to enable it to report to both Houses of Parliament, Scopa can request documents from the spy agency in line with Scopa’s oversight mandate.