Examining oversight institutional failures in the North West Department of Health

Abstract

The Legislatures in the local, provincial and national governments are mandated and bestowed with the powers by the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa of 1996 to ensure accountability by holding the executive accountable and effectively ensuring that there is oversight on the work of government. In order to execute the oversight function, the Legislatures use the Auditor General’s reports, guidance from the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) and departmental policies. The study seeks to identify the systemic challenges faced by the oversight institutions in the North West Department of Health (NWDoH) that lead to failures in executing the oversight function. The research methodology used in this study is the qualitative approach. The population of the study is the oversight committee members from the North West Provincial Legislature (NWPL), NWDoH Office Bearers, former national SCOPA Chairpersons and public finance experts, and data was collected from the participants by using semi-structured interviews and official reports. The data collected from the participants indicated that the oversight committees cannot enforce accountability because their powers are limited to only making recommendations and their decision- making depends on their political allegiance. Political influence and lack of political will is at the centre of the systemic weaknesses within the oversight processes, hence, there is no accountability and consequence management and the non-compliance with the PFMA prevails. The study recommends that the standing rules be strengthened by diluting oversight committees with independent individuals so that committees can operate independently of party-political pressure. The study also recommends that the oversight committee be granted powers to enforce accountability and not just be limited to making recommendations.