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As part of its oversight role as the official opposition, the Democratic Alliance (DA) earlier this year launched a Wasteful Expenditure Monitor to keep an eye on the ANC government's excessive expenditure. We did this to demonstrate how often the needs of the ANC elite are put before the needs of ordinary South Africans.

The running total currently stands at approximately R96, 54 million. This increase from last week's count of R79 million is a direct result of the following incidences of overspending in government:

The eThekwini Municipality in Durban has spent an additional R10 million (approximately) on the development and maintenance of a 2010-related website and its municipal website;

Defence Minister, Lindiwe Sisulu and KwaZulu-Natal MEC for economic development and tourism, Mike Mabuyakhulu, stayed at the luxury 5-star Beverly Hills Hotel in Umhlanga Rocks, north of Durban, at an undisclosed cost, estimated to be between R3 000 and R5 000 per night;

Ms Noluthando Mayende-Sibiya, Minister of Women, Children and People with Disabilities purchased a Range Rover for her Pretoria office and an Audi A6 for her Cape Town office at a combined cost of R1, 263, 113;

At a cost of R173 600, the Mpumalanga 2010 Integrated Office took out several full colour, half page advertisements in The Sowetan newspaper, promoting three events being hosted to celebrate 300 days until the FIFA World Cup 2010 in Mpumalanga.

The Mpumalanga provincial government has also taken out full colour, full page advertisements in various local Mpumalanga-based newspapers at a cost of R108 400, requesting volunteers for the tournament.

Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga has, at a cost of approximately R6 million, scrapped hundreds of thousands of specially watermarked papers for matric certificates, so that new ones with a larger South African coat of arms can be printed instead.

Despite the abundant examples of reckless spending in the ANC government, the DA's Wasteful Expenditure Monitor has however had some positive impact on the spending habits of the executive, as indicated by Deputy Human Settlements Minister Zoliswa Kota-Fredericks's decision to continue using the cars handed down to her by the former Minister, instead of taking delivery of two new luxury vehicles she was scheduled to receive: a Mercedes-Benz and a BMW.

As a direct result of the DA's exercise of its oversight role on this particular issue, other examples of government cutting back on spending have followed, including the Department of Defence's decision to decline the purchase of several new vehicles, and the launch of an initiative by Cabinet to review government expenditure.

Notwithstanding the additional wasteful expenditure detailed above, the DA is encouraged by signs that the ANC government is in some cases responding to public pressure to show respect for and empathise with ordinary South Africans who are buckling under the financial pressures of the recession, by curbing its profligate spending habits.

The DA calls on other government departments and members of the executive to follow these examples and those of the DA provincial government in the Western Cape, and implement measures to monitor and cut back on unnecessary government spending. We will continue to monitor this issue and make the necessary additions to the Wasteful Expenditure Monitor as and when they occur.