Lekwa Local Municipality 2013/14 - Co-operative Governance and ...

• Approval of Budget related Policies• Review of the Annual Report and adoption of the Oversight ReportFunction of Oversight Committee• Undertake a review and analysis of the Annual Report• Invite, receive and consider inputs from Councilors and Portfolio Committees, on the Annual Report.• Consider written comments received on the Annual Report from the public consultation process• Conduct Public Hearing(s) to allow the local community or any organs of state to makerepresentations on the Annual Report• Receive and consider Councils’ Audit Committee views and comments on the annual financialstatements and the performance report.• Preparation of the draft Oversight Report, taking into consideration, the views and inputs of thepublic, representative(s) of the Auditor General, organ of states, Councils’ audit committee andCouncilors.Composition of Oversight CommitteeMembershipThe Oversight Committee is a committee of Council established under section 79 of the Municipal StructuresAct 1998. Section 79, allows for the co-option of advisory members to a committee of Council, who are notmembers of the Council. Due to the separation of roles and responsibilities, between Council and theExecutive (Mayor and Executive Committee) it is not appropriate that members of the Executive Committee bemembers of the Oversight Committee.The Oversight Committee is composed of the following members;• Four PR Councilors :• Two members from local communityAuthority & PowerThe Oversight Committee is delegated the responsibility to conduct meetings and to hold public hearings toreceive and hear public submissions on the Annual Report, on behalf of Council. Timely notice of all meetingsshould be given and all meetings held by the Oversight Committee must be open to the public and minutes ofthe meetings must be submitted to Council meetings.Meeting ScheduleThe Annual Report must be tabled to Council by the 31st January and the Oversight Report must be adoptedwithin two months from the date in which the Annual Report was tabled to Council. Within the two monthperiod, the Oversight Committee will be required to meet as required to fulfil the functions of the committee7.11 MUNICIPAL PUBLIC ACCOUNT COMMITTEE (MPAC)Lekwa Municipality has a fully functional and established Municipal Public Accounts Committee, referred to asthe Municipal SCOPA.Considering there is a need for enhanced financial management oversight capacity, it is thereforerecommended that an oversight committee is established with functions similar to a MPAC withinmunicipality. The MPAC report directly to Council through the Speaker as any other form of reporting line willcompromise the committee’s independence, authority and integrity.FunctionsThe MPAC performs an oversight function on behalf of Council and is not a duplication of, and should not beconfused with the Audit Committee or the finance portfolio committee.219 | P a g e