Thank you, House Chair. Good notes the December 2019 recommendations from the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education, Science and Technology that the National Assembly passes the Bill. We thank the multiparty committee for their work and welcome the amendments that aim to ensure that all public entities comply with the Public Finance Management Act. I also appreciate the submission received that anyone with a criminal record must be disqualified. However, from my own experience working in the justice sector, I know that, sometimes, criminals are able to be reformed.
The amendment to disqualify any person convicted for fraud, corruption or any other crime involving dishonesty from being considered for a board position for at least a decade is accepted. However, we all know even without a criminal record, the wrong people can still be appointed. We have seen how corruption and maladministration results in the waste or theft of taxpayers' money. To protect the poor and our country's finances, Good welcomes the stronger measures to ensure compliance with the Public Finance Management Act and the Bill's measures to clamp down on cadre deployment board appointments by requiring the disclosure of any conflicts of interests.
Cadre deployment must be stopped. There are many qualified skilled people with no party affiliation that can do the job. It is a fact that cadre deployment has destroyed the independence, and often functionality, of government institutions. Good welcomes all efforts to stop corruption and cadre deployment and supports the amendments. Thank you.
Ms J S MANANISO / SRC (Afr) 26/02/20 @9:55 / NN (Eng) / TAKE ENDS AT 14:50