South Africa's main opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Friday it had requested an investigation into Deloitte, the auditors of retail group Steinhoff, after accounting irregularities were uncovered.

"The resignation of Markus Jooste, Chief Executive Officer of Steinhoff International Holdings NV, and the announcement that “accounting irregularities” would require investigation, may be one of the biggest corporate scandals ever in South Africa," DA shadow minister of finance David Maynier said in a statement.

"We are concerned that the auditing firm responsible for signing off the financial statements, which in this case is Deloitte DV in Germany, may have turned a blind eye to accounting irregularities at Steinhoff."

He said he had asked for investigations by the Dutch Authority for the Financial Markets, Germany's Auditor Oversight Body and the Independent Regulatory Board of Auditors in South Africa into whether Deloitte in Germany or South Africa had complied with international audit standards.

"We need to be tough on crime in the public sector, and tough on crime in the private sector, and that is why we will ensure that the scandal surrounding accounting irregularities at Steinhoff International Holdings NV, which has wiped out the savings of thousands of pensioners who invested in the company via the Government Employees Pension Fund, are fully investigated," Maynier added.