BY MBONGENI NDLELA
LOBAMBA – The Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has given the Ministry of Home Affairs 30 days to provide a comprehensive explanation regarding an irregular payment of E539 378.83 made to freight company Inter-Freight Pty Ltd, while also urging the Eswatini Royal Police Service to investigate the matter further.
The directive was issued by PAC Chairperson Madala Mhlanga when senior officials from the Ministry appeared before the committee to respond to concerns raised in Auditor General Timothy Matsebula’s 2025 Audit Report.
According to the Auditor General, the Ministry processed a payment of E539 378.83 for freight charges relating to passports and national identity documents without attaching the required call-off purchase orders and supporting documents. As a result, auditors could not verify whether public funds were spent prudently and for their intended purpose.
The audit report further noted that Financial and Accounting Instructions require all payment vouchers to contain complete particulars and supporting documentation to facilitate proper verification before payment is approved. Auditors also indicated that the requested supporting documents and explanations were not provided during the audit process.
Appearing before the committee, Principal Secretary Nhlanhla Nxumalo told MPs that the Ministry had already initiated an internal investigation into the payment and was seeking clarification from the supplier.
“We have written a letter to Inter-Freight asking them to explain the payment. We are still waiting for their response because the records reflect that the Ministry did pay the company,” said Nxumalo.
He explained that Inter-Freight has for many years provided freight services to Government by collecting sensitive documents such as passports and national identity cards from abroad and transporting them to Eswatini.
“Inter-Freight is the company that collects Government classified documents such as passports and IDs. These documents usually come from abroad to Johannesburg and we then engage Inter-Freight to collect them and transport them as a freight service. We have asked the company to explain,” he added.
When afforded an opportunity to comment further, the Ministry’s Principal Accountant elected not to make any additional submissions on the matter.
However, Mhlanga questioned why the Ministry was relying primarily on a response from the supplier when Government systems should already contain records relating to the transaction.
The PAC Chairperson wanted to know whether it would not be easier to trace the payment through the Treasury Department and Government filing systems rather than waiting for feedback from the company.
Responding to the query, the Principal Accountant stated that the Ministry had received the payment voucher relating to the transaction but was engaging the supplier to obtain further details required to address the Auditor General’s findings.
The explanation did not satisfy Mhlanga, who insisted that the documents being sought by auditors should be retrievable within Government records.
“I am aware that payments are done using batches. At Treasury you can also access a copy of the purchase order instead of going to the supplier. That is what the Auditor General wants,” Mhlanga argued.
He maintained that the Ministry had not yet provided complete answers to the issues raised in the audit report and stressed that Government departments have an obligation to maintain proper records for every transaction involving public funds.
Committee members also expressed concern after Ministry officials acknowledged that they currently do not possess full details regarding the services covered by the payment. The admission raised questions about record management and accountability within the Ministry.
Mhlanga further observed that the frequent transfer and replacement of accounting personnel within the Ministry may have contributed to weaknesses in record-keeping and institutional memory, making it difficult for current officials to account for transactions processed in previous years.
The PAC Chairperson subsequently ordered the Ministry to return within 30 days with a detailed report, supporting documentation and a full explanation regarding the E539 378.83 payment.
He also called on the Eswatini Royal Police Service to investigate the transaction to determine whether any wrongdoing may have occurred.
The matter remains under parliamentary scrutiny as the committee awaits both the Ministry’s internal findings and the supplier’s response, while seeking to establish whether all procurement and payment procedures were properly followed in the expenditure of public funds.
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