Pretoria: Gauteng MEC for Economic Development, Vuyiswa Ramokgopa, has released the Gauteng Liquor Board (GLB) Committee of Inquiry Report. The report, which was submitted to the Gauteng Legislature's Portfolio Committee on Economic Development, was made available to the MEC after she assumed office last month. In a statement, the department emphasized the importance of transparency, accountability, and restoring public confidence in government institutions.
According to South African Government News Agency, the report exposes significant challenges within the GLB, highlighting issues such as collusion between owners and inspectors. It provides a detailed diagnostic analysis of the GLB, uncovering governance challenges like irregular issuance and renewal of liquor licenses, inadequate enforcement mechanisms, poor record-keeping, and allegations of corruption and maladministration. The report also identifies collusion involving inspectors, officials, and unregulated consultants, which undermines the GLB's ability to effectively fulfill its mandate.
A particular area of concern noted in the report is the illegal operation of liquor outlets near schools, places of worship, children's recreational facilities, and residential areas, which contravenes the Gauteng Liquor Act. The report suggests that the GLB's enforcement capacity is strained, with fewer than 20 inspectors overseeing more than 33,000 licensed outlets, alongside an estimated 200,000 illegal outlets operating outside the regulatory framework.
The report's recommendations include strengthening compliance monitoring and enforcement operations, reviewing suspicious and unlawfully issued licenses, enhancing consequence management mechanisms, digitising and modernising licensing systems, improving coordination with municipalities, SAPS, and Metro Police, and enhancing oversight over inspectors and officials involved in licensing and compliance processes.
The Gauteng Liquor Act (2003) and the executive authority vested in the MEC mandate the Department to ensure lawful administration, effective oversight, and compliance enforcement, thereby protecting communities affected by harmful and unlawful liquor trading activities. The MEC acknowledges the liquor industry's significant contribution to the provincial economy but stresses that weak governance and regulatory failures have hindered the sector's full potential. The Department plans to take swift action to strengthen compliance, improve revenue management, and ensure that the industry contributes meaningfully towards economic transformation and the funding of social development programmes.