READER LETTER | Tshwane finances story an affront to Banda

The article in the Sowetan about Tshwane’s financial mess (January 5) refers. The article is undoubtedly in poor taste. It was clearly written by a junior reporter who could not resist a scoop from the DA-run metro council without proper research and objectivity.

The leaking of an audit report, which has not even been discussed at a council meeting, shows a hidden and  malicious agenda. The reporter has no basic understanding of the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) underpinning the preparation of financial statements, otherwise he would not be ridiculing the dismissed CFO Umar Banda.

Your reporter has not made any distinction between accounting errors and fraud in his report. Banda is one of the best black CFOs in the country. I worked with him at KPMG during our training as chartered accounts . His CV is impressive and he passed his board exams in his first attempt.

The Sowetan should be writing this story with deep caution instead of recklessly castigating an icon to many aspiring black children who want to qualify as chartered accountants.

The Sowetan hardly promotes the accounting profession in the black community, yet is quick to condemn a black person who defied all odds from a rural background and rose to the top echelons in the public and private sectors. One still has to read an article in the Sowetan celebrating the success of black candidates when annual board results are announced given that Africans still constitute a insignificant minority of the total accounting professionals.

The reporter has ironically identified material gaps in the staffing (appointment of a full-time city manager, the filling of top management positions) at the metro yet the poor former CFO must “be in for a high jump”. He is clearly being made the scapegoat. This is clear bias and impolite language by the reporter.

Gauteng MEC for human settlements and infrastructure development Lebogang Maile is challenging an audit report in court. One wonders if Banda would get the same harsh treatment if the metro was under a different political party.

He might just be a victim of politics.

Jeffrey Mothuloe, CA (SA)