DA welcomes IRBA’s decision to extend the scope of its investigation into KPMG SA’s forensic audit of SARS “Rogue Unit
Note to Editors: A copy of the correspondence from the Chief Executive Officer of IRBA, Bernard Agulhas, to David Maynier MP, DA Shadow Minister of Finance, can be found here
We welcome the decision by the Chief Executive Officer of the Independent Regulatory Board of Auditors (IRBA), Bernard Agulhas, to extend the scope of the investigation into KPMG South Africa to include the conduct of the auditor responsible for the forensic investigation into the SARS “Rogue Unit”.
We requested the investigation following a determination that the forensic audit into the SARS “Rogue Unit”, conducted by KPMG South Africa, and which was finalised on 04 December 2015, was signed off by a registered auditor, and could therefore be investigated by IRBA.
We received a reply from IRBA to the request to extend the scope of the investigation into KPMG South Africa on 06 October 2017, which reads as follows:
“We hereby confirm that the Independent Regulatory Board for Auditors (IRBA) will be extending the scope of the investigation to include the conduct of the auditor responsible for producing the forensic SARS “Report on Allegations of Irregularities and Misconduct”.
If the auditor, who was responsible for the forensic investigation into the SARS “Rogue Unit”, is charged and found guilty, he could receive a caution or reprimand, incur a fine of up to R200 000 per charge, be suspended from practice for a specified period, or he could be removed from the register, which would effectively terminate his career in the auditing profession, forever.
We hope that, given the public interest in this matter, this investigation will also be fast-tracked by IRBA.
In the end, auditing firms such as KPMG South Africa, which allegedly not only turned a blind eye, but also supplied the corporate grease to lubricate the wheels of state capture, tax evasion and corruption, must be held to account in South Africa.
Statement issued by David Maynier MP, DA Shadow Minister of Finance, 8 October 2017
