The Portfolio Committee on Minerals and Energy will on Tuesday receive legal opinion from Parliament’s legal services, about the accountability of some so-called Schedule 2 entities, including the Central Energy Fund and the South African Nuclear Energy Corporation.

The briefing emanates from the refusal by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy for the two entities to submit their audited financial statement to the portfolio committee on energy. It argued that they are Schedule 2 entities and account to the minister and not Parliament.

Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Minerals, Resources and Energy, Sahlulelo Luzipho says they had to seek legal opinion to get more clarity on the matter.

“The department through the Director-General had written to the Portfolio Committee to the effect that because they are Schedule 2 entities and therefore they are not supposed to be reporting to parliament especially the Portfolio Committee, hence we have requested the legal opinion. What is the status of such section two entities? To what extent are they accountable to the committee, especially the committee as the committee of parliament?”

Government efforts to improve the energy sector:

Source: SABC