I now recognise the Chief Whip.
Deputy Speaker, may I please address you?
I will give you a chance, let him speak first and then you will speak. Go ahead, sir.
I move that the reports be adopted.
Yes, you wanted to say something, sir? Go on.
I need clarity because it looks like we are combining the reports, and we were under the impression that they are separate. That is what we understood to be the case. So, we prepared declarations on them separately as opposed to collectively.
Now, unlike before, in my view is that they are together; combined. So, like I said last time, we work on the basis of what has been presented before us. I would like us to stick to that arrangement.
Will the Deputy Speaker not check confirmation from other people because that is what was communicated to us?
Deputy Speaker, if I may?
Yes.
The DA was under no impression that the items would be done separately; we knew that they would be combined as in accordance with the police report.
Deputy Speaker, I think unlike the previous situation, we were advised that the debates will be combined. So, I don't know what might have happened with other parties.
Anybody else with a different view?
Deputy Speaker, the NFP has been advised that it is going to be one debate. Thank you.
Deputy Speaker, what is interesting to note is that it was combined like the
support for the Springboks. So we knew that it was going to be together. One stronger together! [Laughter.]
Hon Mazzone, wait a minute. Hon members, shall we proceed as agreed? I do not know what happened to the information getting to the EFF. So, let us proceed as agreed.
Declarations of vote:
Hon Deputy Speaker, the DA is deeply concerned that this Parliament continues to skirt around the two most fundamental crisis plaguing South Africa's public service, namely, cadre deployment and the out of control wage bill.
Our country simply cannot prosper without a structural overhaul of how the government appoints, dismisses and disciplines corrupt and incompetent officials. Yet, the reports in front of this House today fail to acknowledge that cadre deployment is at the root of our rotten state.
While we welcome the Department of Public Service and Administration, DPSA, report's commitment to amend
legislation, to make the recommendations of the Public Service Commission legally binding, the report fails to admit that the Public Service Commission should also be given the powers of full appointment and dismissal.
At the same time, the reports entirely ignore the wage bill crisis which will sink this country if we don't address it. This Parliament is apparently dead set on protecting the salaries of the 29 000 millionaire cadres, even if it dooms the South African economy.
As things stands, spending on wages is set to balloon to R758 billion by 2022-23 devouring any prospect of economic recovery. If this Parliament was serious about tackling these crises it will adopt the DA's proposal to build a professional public service by giving the Public Service Commission powers of appointment and slash the wage bill by cutting the millionaires salaries of cadres to protect public service delivery. Thank you, Deputy Speaker. [Applause.]
Chairperson, the EFF rejects the Budgetary Review and Recommendation Report for the Portfolio
Committee on Public Service and Administration. For a state such as ours troubled by differential ... [Interjections.]
Order, hon members, order! Order, hon members! Please stop screaming. Go ahead, hon member.
Chairperson, the EFF rejects the Budgetary Review and Recommendation Report for the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration. For a state such as ours, troubled by differential access to quality public service by appropriation of public money through the elicit practice of outsourcing of services that should normally be performed by public servants, we need a stronger public service that must service all the people in this country equally.
The deliberate weakening of public service; the systematic destruction of the capacity of the state to provide service and the ill-fated attempts by the Minister of Finance to dramatically reduce the public service will be vehemently opposed by the EFF.
The deliberation weakening of public service, the systematic destruction of the capacity of the state to provide service and the ill-fated attempts by the Minister of Finance to dramatically reduce the public service will be vehemently opposed by the EFF for the second time.
The destruction of the public service is aimed at handing over the provision of public services to provide companies so that financials of the friends of those in power can benefit from looting public resources.
We want the public service strengthened; we want nurses appointed for rural clinics; we want qualified teachers appointed to teach our children; we want cleaners and security guards providing service to the state department insourced; and we want tenders abolished so that those appointed in public service are those [Inaudible] So, the EFF rejects this budget. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
House Chairperson ...
Like the member who just spoke, it is the Deputy Speaker. Don't worry about time; you will get enough time as allocated to you. Just correct what you called me. [Laughter.]
Deputy Speaker, thank you for pointing out the error. The department's main task is to conduct oversight over the executive to ensure effective, efficient, developmental and professional service. This can be successfully achieved through a well committed governmental workforce in all departments.
The education of workers on the importance of public service would further promote the objective of the department, by extension the government.
Once we have a public service that is built with educated and skilled people, the effectiveness of programmes and services would be one that truly reflects a government of the people and for the people.
The department should monitor the performance of other government departments financially and governance
performances in order to provide suggestions and appropriate corrective measures where needed. This speaks to the need for planning, monitoring and evaluation which is a task of this department.
The department's own payment of suppliers within seven days either than the prescribed 30 days has been commended by the report in terms of planning, monitoring and evaluation. However, poor performance by this department and its entities is still a challenge for this department.
Lack of commitment from employees and corruption, which acts as a cancer that is eating our government, are all factors that must simply be rooted out. Irregular expenditure thus becomes a major concern where issues of corruption as well as irregular expenditure are often associated with corruption and maladministration.
The government department performed well yet skilled people vacancies are required. The main cause of this is that political appointments, which are cadre deployment,
are made and they lead to poor services to the citizens of this country.
This is one of the reasons why the IFP has constantly been calling for the establishment of a new Chapter 9 institution and the integrity commission to deal with grand corruption and administration. But all having been said, the IFP supports the report. Thank you. [Time expired.]
Deputy Speaker, the bloated public sector wage bill is one of the greatest threats to the country's financial sustainability; a threat also identified by National Treasury and highlighted by the Minister of Finance during last week's mini-budget, by saying that the challenges of the wage bill will have to be dealt with.
Afrikaans:
Openbare-sektor vakbonde sal egter die grootste uitdaging wees, synde die vakbonde die regering gyselaar hou met stakings en dreigemente oor die verlies aan steun.
English:
Whilst there are many government officials not fit for purpose or qualified with necessary skills to deliver the services they are employed to do, in which case consultants are procured to deliver the same services at exorbitant rates. The Department of Public Service and Administration, DPSA, as a department, save for the Public Service Commission, PSC, and certain key functions such as the prevention of fraud and corruption, and monitoring and evaluation, is in many aspects a bloated and unnecessary department in itself, which, if the other state departments function properly, would not have much to do at all. However, it begs the question, if the DPSA fulfilled its mandate of improving management and operation systems to challenges frontline staff face in delivering quality services to citizens by introducing efficient and effective work processes, including information technology, IT, systems that are tailored to specific areas of service delivery, why then are entities such as the Compensation Fund in need of action plans and turnaround strategies due to shortcomings in exactly those areas?
Afrikaans:
Die aanvbevelings deur die komitee ondervang tekortkominge in die verslag. Dit is egter kommerwekkend dat slegs sowat 1 200 ondersoeke gegenereer is uit die 51 000 oproepe deur die antikorrupsie-telefoonlyn.
Hierdie kwessie is glad nie aangespreek nie en laat die vraag ontstaan of daar werklik erns gemaak word met die voorkoming en bevegting van korrupsie en bedrog.
English:
The FF Plus objects to the Budgetary Review and Recommendation Report of the DPSA. I thank you.
Deputy Speaker, the ACDP has carefully considered this report on Public Service and would like to raise a few issues.
While there are many thousands of civil servants who conscientiously perform their tasks to the best of their ability, often under very difficult circumstances, there are also many who do not perform optimally, and indeed are involved in fraud and corruption.
Poor service delivery has resulted in an increase in the number of protests, with many turning violent. Widespread fraud and corruption has deprived ordinary citizens of the services that they desperately need. For example, we saw the SA Social Security Agency, Sassa, scandal that almost deprived millions of South Africans of their much- needed social welfare grants and pensions.
The question is, where are the Batho Pele principles, and is the Public Service Charter being lived up to? Programme four relates to integrity and anticorruption steps. Clearly this is very crucial. One of the ways to combat fraud and corruption is to strictly enforce the implementation of the financial disclosure framework in the Public Service. This is required by law but doesn't seem to be implemented sufficiently. Senior managers are required to disclose all their registrable interests annually. Remunerative work outside the Public Service is also forbidden without due approval being obtained. This must be closely monitored. No public servant or members of their close family should be allowed to do business with the state. Regular lifestyle audits should also be introduced.
The ACDP believes that these steps will go a long way to combat the widespread fraud and corruption in the Public Service. That having been said, the ACDP would like to thank all those loyal and hardworking public servants that do comply with the legislation and are not involved in fraud and corruption. I thank you.
Deputy Speaker, the NFP welcomes the Budgetary Review and Recommendation Report on the Department of Public Service and Administration tabled here today.
The National School of Government is a very important pillar in the department. The need to train and transfer necessary skills to public servants to best serve the public is vital in achieving the objectives set out by the Public Service Act, particularly the need to uphold integrity, ethics, conduct and anticorruption, as well as transformation, reform, innovation and any other matter to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of the Public Service and its service delivery to the public.
The NFP notes the clean audit achieved by the National School of Government, as well as maintaining accredited status by relevant accredited bodies. Completing the eight training needs analysis to inform training and development opportunities in the Public Service ... Further, on completing seven evaluation and four applications of learning studies ...
The NFP notes that 25 e-learning interventions were offered to public servants. A total of 61 005 current and potential servants were trained on compulsory and demand- led training on school curricula.
Irregular expenditure, which amounted to R310 000 caused by goods and services, which were procured without obtaining the required price quotations, again shows negligence.
It is important that we avoid the dragging of disciplinary cases. The department has lost millions, amounting to precautionary suspensions nationally ... 27,1 million only.
The NFP notes the 2% target met by the PSC for people with disabilities and employment equity. However, we must push to achieve the 50% target for the representation of females at senior management service, SMS, levels 13 to 16. The department must put measures in place to assist the PSC to achieve a clean audit. The NFP supports the Budgetary Review and Recommendation Report tabled here today. Thank you.
Deputy Speaker, our contribution in this debate will not traverse the thematic areas that are canvassed in the committee report. We will, however, touch base on the performance of the PSC and the Centre for Public Service Innovation, CPSI.
Of the nine institutions supporting democracy, the PSC is but one institution which has not carried out its constitutional functions to the best of its ability, and with efficiency. The Constitution clearly spells out its functions, which include monitoring and investigating compliance to applicable procedures in the Public Service.
One of the notable procedures often flouted in the Public Service is the procurement and contractual processes. The PSC has never used its powers to rein in noncompliant organs of state in the Public Service. Year in and year out, the Auditor-General, AG, decries the state of finances in the Public Service. The PSC is ... [Inaudible.] ... when the Public Service is engulfed by unethical discretions.
The CPSI is also implicated. The committee report states that its role is to entrench and drive service-delivery innovation across all sectors. Over the past 25 years, there is little innovation that buttresses the public sector.
We wish to assist the CPSI. It should start here in Parliament. The Post Office is doing an excellent job. The Postbank, which should have been installed in Parliament and other government buildings long ... [Time expired.]
The ANC supports the recommendation report of the DPSA, the National School of Government, CPSI,
Statistics SA and the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, as well as Brand SA, that all received unqualified audit reports for the year under review, outshone of course by the National School of Government with a clean audit.
Our developmental trajectory is premised on the developmental state approach in which we seek to build a capable, professional, effective and efficient Public Service which will tackle corruption and build ethical public leadership.
Fellow South Africans, it will be difficult without effective planning, monitoring and evaluation to know if government work is still aligned to the principles that guide the National Development Plan. Therefore, the department's planning provides a basis for a monitoring framework in measuring progress made.
While Brand SA contributes towards communicating successes as well as our diverse national identity to the world, challenges have been identified, and we urge Brand SA to follow through as per the AG's report.
Through the National School of Government, the department continues to provide training to public servants to ensure that professionalism is realised.
The PSC has achieved an unqualified audit opinion and must move with speed towards a clean audit report.
The DPSA vacancy rate must be improved to the acceptable rate as it affects service delivery, notwithstanding the reconfiguration of the Public Service as a whole in government.
With Statistics SA, the ANC identified and resolved that strengthening integrated support for them is one of the priorities of the Sixth administration.
Thank you very much. As the ANC we support this report. [Time expired.] [Applause.]
Question put.
Motion agreed to.
Report on Department of Public Service and Administration, Public Service Commission, National School of Government and Centre for Public Service Innovation: Vote 10 accordingly adopted (Democratic Alliance, Economic Freedom Fighters, African Christian Democratic Party and Freedom Front Plus dissenting).
Report on Statistics South Africa: Vote 12 accordingly adopted (Democratic Alliance, Economic Freedom Fighters, African Christian Democratic Party and Freedom Front Plus dissenting).
Report on Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation and Brand South Africa: Vote 8 accordingly adopted (Democratic Alliance, Economic Freedom Fighters, African Christian Democratic Party and Freedom Front Plus dissenting).