Less than 2% of the government's most senior managers are being probed after undergoing lifestyle audits – three years after it became mandatory.

The issue of lifestyle audits, which became mandatory for the government's senior management service (SMS), has been a thorny issue for the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA).

Compulsory lifestyle audits for senior management were introduced on 1 April 2021.

Dr Salomon Hoogenraad-Vermaak, chief director of public administration ethics, integrity and disciplinary technical assistance unit, told News24 that as of 31 March 2023, 7 856 members of the SMS were subjected to lifestyle reviews.

This, he said, is the first step of the lifestyle audit process.

"Of this number (7 856), 157 cases involving SMS were referred for lifestyle investigation by various departments (the second step)," he said.

Furthermore, Public Service and Administration Minister Noxolo Kiviet told Parliament the process of conducting lifestyle audits in the public service comprises three phases.

These include lifestyle review, lifestyle investigation, and lifestyle audit (quantification and evaluation).

She revealed these details in response to a written Parliamentary question from DA MP Mimmy Gondwe who wanted details on the progress made with the lifestyle audits.

According to Kiviet, the 2022/2023 financial year is the second year since the implementation of lifestyle audits in the public service.

"During the first year (2021/2022) of implementation, the DPSA focused on capacity building to capacitate more than 200 ethics officers in the public service on how to conduct lifestyle reviews, which is the first step when conducting lifestyle audits.

"Currently, during the 2023/2024 financial year, the DPSA focuses on investigators in the public service to capacitate them on how to conduct lifestyle investigation, since the process of lifestyle audit is a new phenomenon in the public service.  As a result of this training, about 200 senior management members reviews were referred for investigation in this financial year," she said.

Furthermore, Kiviet said the process of conducting lifestyle audits in the public service is in its second year and is still yet to be evaluated for effectiveness in preventing and detecting fraud and corruption.

"However, the improvement in the number of national departments from 24 (in 2021/2022) to 36 (in 2022/2023), and provincial departments from 71 (in 2021/2022) to 89 (in 2022/2023) who started to conduct lifestyle audits, indicates that departments are geared to conduct lifestyle investigations," she said.

As of 31 March 2023, only 36 of 44 national departments and 89 of 103 provincial departments indicated they had performed lifestyle reviews for the 2022 financial year.

In 2022, News24 reported that lifestyle audits had been conducted at 15 national departments and entities as well as in six provinces.

Lifestyle audits led to five officials in the Department of Small Business Development being dismissed, albeit the processes started before the mandatory lifestyle audits in April 2021.

At the time, Ayanda Dlodlo was the minister of public service and administration.

In other matters relating to corrupt conduct of public servants, Kiviet said that to date 1815 cases have been referred to police by SASSA for further criminal investigation for the contravention of Section 21 of the Social Assistance Act, as it is a criminal offence.

"The recovery of loss is being managed, where the employee is located through signing of an acknowledgment of debt that SASSA at provincial office will submit to the Office of the Premier. Where employees refuse to sign acknowledgement of debt forms, Section 300 of the Criminal Procedure Act, will be invoked. DPSA and SASSA will coordinate the process," she said.

Between May and October 2020, Kiviet said 5812 civil servants benefited from the Covid 19 Social Relief of Distress grant.