Media Release: Another clean audit for Garden Route DM – a promise kept!

For Immediate Release
2 December 2022

As promised, the Garden Route District Municipality (GRDM) has maintained its clean audit outcome. The culture of good governance and accountability remains unmatched when comparing the GRDM to some of the 44 district municipalities in South Africa.

The fiscal discipline, rigid financial planning, and continuous oversight, combined with hundreds of internal controls added to the institution’s achievement. Clean audits and improvements by municipalities reflect the tone set by municipal managers and institutions.

Monde Stratu, GRDM Municipal Manager proudly boasted about the achievement. “We’ve consistently worked on instilling a culture of being accountable and improving controls to sustain the Clean Audit Outcome.”

“I am also very proud of everyone who worked in the background to help us achieve such a wonderful milestone, it was a team effort,” said Stratu.

The Executive Mayor of GRDM, Alderman Memory Booysen, expressed his gratitude to the entire municipality, in particular, the Municipal Manager and Financial Services Department. It is an honour for us to be part of the Western Cape, a province that sets the highest standard of financial management in South Africa.” According to the Auditor General’s report to Parliament on 23 November, the Western Cape continues to be the province with the highest number of clean audit outcomes.

When presenting the Audit Outcome to a Combined Municipal Public Accounts Committee and Audit Committee of GRDM, Ashiq Allie, the Manager AGSA for the GRDM audit, congratulated the institution for achieving a clean audit outcome for the financial year under review. The Final Audit Report was submitted to the Municipality on 30 November 2022. He also commented that he knows it takes a lot of work on the ground to maintain a clean audit and that it is a combination of hard work by management and taking the AG’s findings seriously over the years.

MPAC Chairperson Cllr Danie Acker expressed gratitude to employees and Council for their commitment to a clean audit report. He further elaborated on the fact that the audit outcome is proof that coalition governments can work because they keep things together. “I am extremely proud and honoured about this achievement.”

ENDS

Notes by the editor:

Municipal managers are responsible for preparing and fairly representing their institution’s financial statements in accordance with the Generally Recognised Accounting Practice (GRAP) and the requirements of the Municipal Finance Management Act 56 of 2003. The Auditor General conducts an audit in accordance with the International Standards on Auditing (ISAs).