Minister of Public Service and Administration Media Briefing on the Governance & Administration Cluster

Q         An Independent Newspapers reporter aired some concerns on the increasing number of municipalities receiving assistance from national government. Basically the number of municipalities had increased from 85 in 2007 to 109 in 2008. The question was whether the increasing number of municipalities that depended mainly on direct assistance from national government signaled a lack of capacity in local governments.

A         The Director General of Provincial and Local Government pointed out that government had embarked and agreed on an agenda which binds all spheres of government to assist local governments in carrying out their mandates. She admitted that there were numerous challenges which undermine the capacity of local governments. The amalgamation of certain municipalities was quoted as an example.

Q         The media asked for more clarity as to what the Minimum Anti-Corruption Capacity learning manual entailed.

A         The Minister pointed out that the manual sought to provide ground rules and guidelines regarding what was required in the public service to create or maintain an ethical environment. With regard to the content of the manual, the Minister stated that she did not have the copy of the manual with her.

Q         The media asked the Minister to reveal the name of the company that would serve as a single service provider for delivery and collection of identity documents.

A         However, the Minister refused to entertain such question. She stated that it is the Department of Home Affairs that could respond to such question. With regards to the time frame in the implementation of the Single Public Service, the Minister stated that the time frame would be revealed after due consideration and that Government aims for an incremental approach.

Q         A reporter from the City Press questioned government's commitment in reaching the 2% target rate of employees with disabilities in the Public Service as well as the 50% target of women in senior management positions in the Public Service. Noting that people with disabilities constituted less than 0.2 %, while women in senior management positions remained at 33% in 2007, an explanation was requested.

A         The DG of Provincial and Local Government remained optimistic particularly with regard to the possibilities of achieving the 50% target of women in senior management positions in the Public Service. The DG mentioned that the department was working in collaboration with the office in the Presidency to develop a disability database. However, the DG stated that despite such commitments, some people remain reluctant to reveal their disabilities and Government could not force them to do so; and such, according to the DG, hampered the progress.

With regard to the challenges faced by the department in putting women in senior positions, the Minister noted that there were a number of environmental factors such as the lack of a breastfeeding mechanism in the work place. The DG also revealed that it was part of the performance measures of all Directors General that they sufficiently put women in senior management positions.
 
Q         An Independent Newspapers reporter referred to the poor compliance with the Performance Management System. After noting that only 105 municipalities, that was 37.1%, have reached the implementation phase, he asked what was the deadline for all municipalities to reach the implementation phase.

A         The DG of Provincial and Local Government was not able to give a deadline. She stated that even though government was committed to rolling out sufficient assistance to municipalities within the current financial year and even if it has been able to develop guidelines and a baseline, the programme was of a long term nature. Moreover the DG admitted that the current progress remains unsatisfactory.
 
A         Lastly, responding to the speculations about a 10% increase in the salary of public servants, the Minister confirmed the validity of such speculations. The Minister pointed out that there was an agreement between the parties concerned. She specifically mentioned that there was an agreement on an increase based on the CPIX + 1% for this financial year. She concluded that "the matter would be resolved accordingly".

The meeting was adjourned.