EFF challenges Auditor General over Parliament secretary’s 70% salary hike

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) said that it will not be silenced on challenging the appointment and the more than 70% salary increase of Parliament Secretary, Xolile George.

The party is in a stand-off with the Auditor General over its audit finding on the matter, which did not question the recruitment process nor the salary bump a few months into his 2022 appointment.

EFF Treasurer-General and Parliamentarian Omphile Maotwe said that the party has submitted a complaint with 70 pages of annexes to the AG, but has yet to receive answers.

After a heated meeting earlier this month, the Joint Committee on the Financial Management of Parliament said it was satisfied that it had sufficiently probed matters related to George’s appointment, which included a bench marking exercise that raised his salary from the approved amount of R2.6 million per annum to over R4.4 million within a matter of months.

Furthermore, it said that the Auditor General did not find any irregularities.

But the EFF’s Omphile Maotwe is not in agreement with the committee’s decision, saying she suspects the Auditor General was not presented with all the relevant documentation during the audit.

The party has requested an explanation from the AG’s office.

" Are these annexes that we are presenting to you now, were they presented to you at the time, for you to come to a conclusion that you are happy? And now that you are presented with these annexes, would you still come to the same conclusion? "

Maotwe is also suspicious of the double salaries George earned while transitioning from the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) CEO to the head of Parliament in 2022.

"There’s nothing wrong with the AG saying: we didn’t have these documents, but now that we have it, we will reopen the audit process again. The law allows for that. But why’s she keeping quiet?"

Maotwe said that the AG’s role is critical in this matter, and that it can’t be left up to the Public Protector to probe it alone after the pair wed over the weekend.

The AG’s office is yet to respond to a request for comment.

Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka recused herself from the investigation, citing a perceived personal conflict when the Democratic Alliance laid the complaint in February.