Dear Editor
The Democratic Alliance is demanding the immediate release of the full Auditor-General’s report into the failed driver’s licence card tender, following the repeated breakdown of South Africa’s only licence card printing machine, a collapse that continues to paralyse renewals for millions of motorists.
The latest failure of a staggering 733 000-card backlog caused by yet another breakdown of the country’s sole driver’s licence printing machine has laid bare the systemic dysfunction at the heart of the Department of Transport. Despite years of promises to upgrade to smart card technology and to acquire a second machine, the Department has failed to deliver.
A contract awarded in 2022 to a French company for new smart card printing equipment was flagged by the Auditor-General as irregular, with costs ballooning from a budgeted R486 million to R898 million an overrun of more than R400 million. Since then, the Department has hidden behind court proceedings and refused to release the full AG report to Parliament or the public.
To break the deadlock, the DA will:
- Submit a formal PAIA request for the full Auditor-General’s report.
- Table parliamentary questions to establish whether the AG’s findings have been referred to Treasury, the Presidency, or any law enforcement authority.
- Push for a parliamentary summons of Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA) officials, together with senior leadership from the Department of Transport to account for this ongoing failure.
The Department of Transport has shown little regard for its constitutional obligation to be transparent and accountable.
We will not accept a government that hides behind broken machines and broken promises.
Regards
Dr Chris Hunsinger MP
DA Spokesperson on Transport