New CEO of KPMG, Nhlamu Dlomu, has acknowledged that it has been a difficult time for the embattled firm, but says that -- just like people -- companies make mistakes.
"We are not trying to hide our mistakes"KPMG CEO Nhlamu Dlomu
Dlomu, who was speaking on Talk Radio 702 on Friday morning, said: "We acknowledge that mistakes we made that were costly to us. We are working hard to reassure our clients, our people and the country. That is why we have an independent inquiry to show transparency."
"We really want the country to know we recognize the distress and seriousness of this"
Dlomu spoke about how the firm wanted to be transparent and why it was important to have an independent inquiry. "It is unfortunate that we didn't identify the risk immediately, it could have been done earlier".
"We want to make sure this firm -- which has contributed to this economy [in a] positive way -- corrects these mistakes, owns up to those mistakes and takes full responsibility. We are not trying to hide our mistakes.
"Organisations make mistakes. The firm [is] its people and people make mistakes. We really want the country to know we recognise the distress and seriousness of this. It is not about our self-interest, we want to make sure that we [are] a South African company that is responsible."
Dlomu -- who took over from Trevor Hoole -- was asked how she was handling her new job at KPMG, to which she said: "I am surviving with a lot of support."
"I do not believe I was left out to dry, I have support, but it is not one person's job to get it right at KPMG."
When asked about payouts to the executives who resigned, Dlomu said that the company had followed recommendations from KPMG international. "[The] payout is worked out from different criteria for different people."
KPMG appeared before Parliament's standing committee on public accounts to explain why it should continue to receive work from government in light of the scandal over its Sars report into the so-called "rogue unit", according to EWN.