Public Audit Act, 2004 (Act No. 25 of 2004)Chapter 4: Administration of Auditor-GeneralPart 3: Financial administration43. Financial responsibilities of Deputy Auditor-General |
| (1) | Deputy Auditor-General is the accounting officer in the administration of the Auditor-General. |
| (2) | As accounting officer, the Deputy Auditor-General is responsible for— |
| (a) | managing the financial administration of the Auditor-General; |
| (b) | all income and expenditure of the Auditor-General; and |
| (c) | all assets and the discharge of all liabilities of the Auditor-General. |
| (3) | The Deputy Auditor-General must, for the purposes of subsection (2), take all reasonable steps to ensure – |
| (a) | that full, true and effective records of all income and expenditure and of all assets, liabilities, and of all financial transactions of the Auditor-General are kept; |
| (b) | that the Auditor-General has and maintains – |
| (i) | effective, efficient and transparent systems of financial and risk management and internal control; |
| (ii) | a system of internal audit under the control and direction of an audit committee; |
| (iii) | an appropriate procurement and provisioning system which is fair, equitable, transparent, competitive and cost-effective; and |
| (iv) | a system for properly evaluating all major capital projects prior to a final decision on the project; |
| (c) | that the resources of the Auditor-General are used effectively, efficiently, economically and transparently; |
| (d) | that all money due to the Auditor-General is collected; |
| (e) | that irregular expenditure, fruitless and wasteful expenditure and losses resulting from criminal conduct are prevented; |
| (f) | that available working capital is managed efficiently and economically; |
| (g) | that the assets of the Auditor-General are effectively managed, safeguarded and maintained, and that liabilities are properly managed; |
| (h) | that any tax, levy, duty, pension, medical aid scheme and other statutory commitments of the Auditor-General are complied with; |
| (i) | that all contractual obligations of the Auditor-General are complied with and that all money owing is paid within the agreed period; |
| (j) | that any irregular or fruitless and wasteful expenditure in the administration is immediately reported to the Auditor-General, in writing; |
| (k) | that disciplinary or, when appropriate, criminal proceedings, are instituted against any staff member who has allegedly committed an act of financial misconduct in terms of section 46, an offence in terms of section 51 or a criminal act resulting in a loss for the Auditor-General; |
| (l) | that all relevant financial considerations, including issues of propriety, regularity and value for money, are considered when decisions affecting the Auditor-General's funds are made, and, when necessary, that those considerations are brought to the attention of the Auditor-General; and |
| (m) | that staff members comply with the provisions of this Act. |
| (4) | If the Deputy Auditor-General is unable to comply with any of his or her responsibilities as accounting officer, the Deputy Auditor-General must promptly report, in writing, the inability, together with reasons, to the Auditor-General. |
| (5) | The Deputy Auditor-General must— |
| (a) | take effective and appropriate steps to prevent any overspending of the budget referred to in section 38 or any expenditure not in accordance with the budget; and |
| (b) | report to the Auditor-General and the oversight mechanism on any actual or impending— |
| (i) | under collection of revenue due; |
| (ii) | shortfalls in budgeted revenue; and |
| (iii) | overspending of the budget or expenditure not in accordance with the budget. |
| (6) | The Deputy Auditor-General has such additional responsibilities as accounting officer as the Auditor-General may determine from time to time. |