The DA’s pressure has led to confirmation from the Department of Roads and Public Works that they have dismissed suspended Chief Financial Officer, Bradley Slingers, following the outcome of an internal disciplinary hearing. This is only the first step in fighting corruption in the provincial government and must extend to other departments.
The DA expects the Premier, Dr Zamani Saul, to make an example of the Slingers case and urgently lead a process to ensure that internal disciplinary processes are initiated against all officials whose fate has been left to the courts alone to determine. Departments also have a critical responsibility to enforce accountability and to punish wrongdoing, and they should be acted against when they fail to do so.
The DA will monitor developments in relation to instituting efficient disciplinary processes within departments. We will also probe the delayed implementation of the dismissal of Slingers by the department. It cannot be that department’s only act when scandal hits the media.
The DA appreciates that the Slingers case remains under investigation by law enforcement agencies. We hope that the investigation is finalized soon and that it leads to Slingers’ prosecution by the National Prosecuting Agency.