Minister of Public Service and Administration Budget speech & response by DA and IFP

Briefing

13 May 2015

Minister of Public Service and Administration, Nathi Mthethwa, gave his Budget Vote Speech on 13 May 2015.

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Honourable Chairperson of the House
Deputy Minister for Public Service and Administration, Ms Ayanda Dlodlo
Honourable Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee
Former Chief Justice Sandile Ngcobo and the current Chairperson of the Presidential Review Commission
Acting Chairperson of the Public Service Commission
Chairperson of the Government Employees Medical Scheme
Directors-General and Heads of Entities of the MPSA portfolio
Distinguished guests and friends
Ladies and gentlemen

Exactly sixty years ago, in June 1955 in Kliptown, Johannesburg, the foresight and wisdom of ordinary South African citizens, we consolidated our foundation for our world admired Constitution. We are reminded that this powerful policy lodestar, which was collectively conceived by our forbearers so many years ago, promised that: “All people shall be entitled to take part in the administration of the country”.

In this year 2015, Year of the Freedom Charter, President Zuma has committed that, I quote: “as government we will go back to basics to improve the lives of all South Africans.’ Government’s achievable quest to become a high performing public service, as well as our, commitment to improving the lives of all its citizens and emancipating the potential in each individual, intensified as we entered the third decade of South Africa’s democracy.

Equally profound Ladies and Gentlemen, is the fact that our Government is hosting Africa Month celebrations throughout the month of May in commemoration of the formation of the Organisation of African Union (OAU) in 1963. Africans from the continent and in the diaspora have descended on our shores to join us in these celebrations.

Having placed Africa at the centre of its foreign policy, our government is now challenged to  place the African agenda at the centre of its international engagements at a multilateral level amongst others ,as well as in other international institutions. As the Public Service, we will also be partaking in the Africa Public Service Day in June 2015, under the theme of: “ The Role of the Public Service in Women Empowerment, Innovation and Accessible Service Delivery”. 

On the other hand, our South African citizens are also calling upon government to equally prioritise service delivery to them, through an administration that is responsive to their aspirations and basic needs.

Ladies and gentlemen,

This Budget Vote is presented at such a difficult moment for this portfolio and public service at large, with the recent tragic untimely passing on of our well respected and dedicated colleague, late Minister Collins Chabane, who had already assumed such an onerous task in redirecting the public service machinery. With his feet firmly rooted in the reality of the needs and conditions of our ordinary people,the late Minister Chabane committed to this house and to the people of South Africa at large, that the face of the public service was going to change, with an objective to create a public service with a soul. Last year, the late Minister Chabane committed to work with all stakeholders at the coalface, to bring quality services to our people, by including and imploring all public servants to provide transformative solutions, in improving government operations together with the Centre for Public Service Innovations (CPSI).

David Osborne, reminds us that the road to improve public service is never an easy one to follow, I quote his caution:
“There is no recipe you can follow to reinvent government; no step-by-step progression to which you must slavishly adhere. The process is not linear, and it is certainly not orderly. Things rarely go as planned; re-inventors must constantly adjust their approaches in response to the resistance and opportunities they encounter.” [ Close quotes]

As part of our ongoing recruitment strategy to make the public service a career of choice for youth and women, we have invited 8 eight young girls in the gallery above, from the following schools, Kulani High School based in Kwalanga and Intshukumo  High School based in Gugulethu.

Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in welcoming these bright sparks, in whom the future of the public service lies.

[You may be seated]

This is in line with taking a Girl Child to work.

In pursuing an appropriate developmental public service machinery, our emancipatory solutions are embedded in the extent to which the public service can set and steer a national public administration plan infused with the vision of the National Development Plan.

We are cognisant that as we present today’s Budget Vote for the Ministry for Public Service and Administration, it is at a time where many more citizens are expecting government to respond to the socio-economic challenges highlighted within the NDP by embarking on radical economic transformation through a development-oriented administration.

Government will ensure that all outcomes within the NDP are effectively  addressed by: providing quality basic education to all; providing safety and security in all communities; a public service driven by quality healthcare to communities; a public service which is an enabler for economic growth and job creation; a functional local government administration that provides utilities to communities; a society where there is social cohesion and respect for national symbols and a public service which is imbued with common values that places our citizens at the centre of our socio-economic development as a nation and ensures sustainable livelihoods.

Our South African public service has not been able to fulfil all the ideals of our citizens as highlighted in the National Development Plan – but we are tirelessly working towards  improving our capability in this regard.

Ethical, integrity, as well as, maladministration issues, continue to challenge the development of a professionalised public service. It is important that public servants respect and dedicate all their time to their employment contract. The limitation placed on public servants doing business with government is our endeavour to promote and practice good governance.

Ladies and gentlemen, may I remind you that as a Public Servant, You are a Servant of the Public and not that the public is your servant! As the public service, our progressive employment policies and practices expect employees to reciprocate, by coming to work on time and by serving the public in an exemplary manner- we expect nothing less!

Efficiency and Effective Systems through Service Delivery Improvement

As government we are cognisant of the role that modernising through e-government systems is the route to fast-track service delivery. The Management Practices Assessment Toolkit (MPAT) driven by the DPME, has highlighted weaknesses in basic building blocks in organisational functionality within most departments. Our Operations Management Framework has responded to these concerns through mapping business processes and standard operating procedures, as well as, conducting Organisational Functionality Assessments of selected departments.

A strategy for providing resultant support to poor performing departments has been drafted for consultation with stakeholders in the public service.

Ladies and gentlemen, I believe that public service is a calling! I, and all other public servants, do so because we want to serve our people!

It is for this reason that we are driving a campaign to continually instil the Batho Pele values in all public servants, especially our frontline staff. The DNA make-up of our public servant must consist of men and women with impeccable ethical conduct, including a high work ethic, display high morale, humility and pride, associated with being a loyal public servant. We must be beyond reproach as public servants. Our administrative culture must create an organisational culture, which embeds a civic culture reflective of an Ubuntu value system.

It is for this reason, and in partnership with National School of Government, that we will begin the process of changing our bureaucratic patterns of thinking and our attitudinal behaviour. These are our ideals for reviving our Batho Pele Strategies going forward.

The complaints about the deficiencies and defects of government must inspire us to develop new ideas and practical innovations collaboratively with Centre for Public Service Innovation (CPSI), in how we must work to improve service delivery.

I hereby invite any citizen to forward such suggestions and ideas to my department.

Having institutionalised unannounced visits to frontline service delivery points during Public Service Month, over the past eight years, we have started yielding positive turnaround results. Selected hospitals, home affairs offices and police stations, have demonstrated improved service delivery when implementing systems and process changes. We have also observed an employee workforce that is better equipped to embrace the Batho Pele principles more readily and demonstrate a visible change in attitude.

As part of our commitment in rewarding professionalism and  service excellence, as well as improving the morale of deserving public servants, we acknowledged outstanding men and women in the public service through this our 2nd Annual National Batho Pele Excellence Awards ceremony which was successfully held on 14 November 2014 in Gauteng.

Ladies and Gentleman, we are today joined by two such recipients. Please join me in calling upon, [please rise] Ms Duduzile Ndlovu from the Port Shepstone Regional Hospital, in KwaZulu-Natal who was awarded the Best Frontline Public Service Employee of the Year 2014; and Ms Maria Maghrieta Goodier from the Department of Health, Ruyterwacht Community Health Care Clinic, in Western Cape awarded Best Overall Batho Pele Public Servant of the Year 2014. We once again applaud you for your resilience and your resolute commitment not only to enhancing the lives of our ordinary citizens, but also excelling in your respective duties.

I thank you and hope that you will remain lifetime Batho Pele ambassador’s and an example to all other public servants to strive for this noble accolade. [You may take your seats.]

Productivity Measurement and Performance Management

As the public service we need to start doing more with less, as taxpayers want to see efficiency and effectiveness in spending. We are cognisant that productivity in the public sector is just as important to economic performance of South Africa. Within this financial year we will address gaps in efficiency and effectiveness of measures through improving our performance measurement instruments.

Our focus going forward is to strengthen both the HOD evaluation system, as well as the performance management system for all employees to ensure service quantity outputs and service quality outcomes are met and that government gets value for money.

We have to justify the number of employees recruited to the senior management level and hence are currently reviewing the post provisioning norms in order to ensure optimal utilisation of employees and personnel spend.
We present herewith our plans for the 2015/2016 financial year and account for the voted 2014/2015 funds.

Implementing Strategic-State Capability

Following the announcement of the new Cabinet on 25 May 2014, the dpsa implemented the second National Macro-organisation of the State (NMOS II) project to effect the transfer of functions, renaming and creation of departments.
To support the social vision of the NDP and manage the administrative: political interface, Cabinet approved a delegations framework, as well as a Directive, which clarifies the level of Executive Authorities involvement in human resources management matters, including appointments.

Public Administration Management Act

After an extensive consultative process, the signing into law of the Public Administration Management Act (PAM Act) by President Jacob Zuma in December 2014, brings a culmination of a complex process over a number of years, a successful quest towards ensuring seamless service delivery by all spheres of government within common values of public administration as enshrined in the Constitution. The Act will apply to all departments in the national and provincial spheres of government, as well as municipalities.

The Act provides for powers for the MPSA to set minimum norms and standards in selected areas, including the promotion of basic values and principles contained in section 195(1) of the Constitution.

The two key regulatory institutions which will be set up are, a Technical Assistance Unit for Ethics, Integrity and Discipline management; as well as, an Office of Standards and Compliance for minimum norms and standards for Public Administration. The current National School of Government (NSG) will also be transformed to provide high-level in-house customised capacity development and training within the public sector. As part of the emerging work on the development of the legislative framework, DPSA is developing draft regulations for the various provisions.

Discipline Management

As part of our ongoing efforts to manage discipline within the Public Service, Cabinet approved, firstly the creation of a pool of labour relations specialists and a team of legal experts from the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development to deal with the backlog of disciplinary cases, as well as, secondly, approving uniform guidelines for precautionary suspensions.

International Commitments 

The NSG as part of the Management Development Institutes (MDI) network in Africa participates in initiatives championed under the African Union Conference of Ministers of Public Service in Africa (AU –CAMPS) Capacity Building Champions. The NSG is currently participating in an Africa-wide research project on the State of the Public Service in Africa as the lead institution in the SADC region. This research project provides support and cooperation with other countries in coordinating activities for the completion of a final report by 2015.

Pursuant to CPSI’s role since 2008 in co-ordinating the All Africa Public Service Innovation Awards (AAPSIA), CAMPS has further requested that we continue playing this crucial role. As part of our ongoing international commitments, through the CPSI we continue to manage the UN Public Administration Network by uploading articles from the SADC region, as well as managing  this portal.

Our involvement in both the multilateral structures of the United Nations (UN), as well as, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), has seen us accenting to instruments which measure transparently our efforts in combating bribery and corruption.
  
Government Employee Medical Scheme Role

Linked to our endeavour to have a healthy productive workforce, GEMS remains central to assisting the public service in fully addressing employee’s health needs. This includes the needs of retired employees, affordable healthcare for current members, as well as, requests from non-members, who desire to be part of the scheme. However, numerous innovative support programmes from GEMS provides the necessary support to departments in trying to combat work environment related illnesses. Coupled with this, the public service needs to assist GEMS in combating misuse of the scheme by members.

Honourable Members, these are the objective transformative solutions which will be delivered through organic plans for the year ahead, as we call upon your objective criticism and support, we will include your emancipatory solutions as governed by the values and principles enlisted in our Constitution which requires excellence in providing impartial, fair, equitable and responsive public services.

We therefore implore you to support our endeavours by supporting this budget vote.

As the care-taker Minister for Public Service and Administration in this fifth administration, I have the privileged task, albeit in an acting capacity, of guiding our public service to new heights of professionalised service delivery. A good foundation has been laid by my predecessors; hence I am certain that over the next four years we would have seen significant public sector reforms.

Our objective remains - achieving excellence in governance capacity and we shall collectively succeed!

I thank you.

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Draft Budget Vote Speech by Public Service and Administration Deputy Minister Ms Ayanda Dlodlo, MP

13 May 2015

Honourable House Chairperson,
Honourable the Acting-Minister for Public Service and Administration, Mr Nathi Mthethwa,
Honourable Members of Parliament
All protocols observed
Ladies and Gentlemen

The 8th of January in 1980, declared by the African National Congress (ANC) as the Year of the Charter. The President of the ANC, Comrade Oliver Reginald Tambo had this to say about the Freedom Charter “When we together drew up and adopted the Freedom Charter, we stated the matter plainly that each people has a right to independence and self-government, and to equal status”.

These words ring true even today because the Freedom Charter constitutes the embodiment of our deepest aspirations as a people.

Honourable House Chairperson, today we present the 2015/16 budget for the Ministry for Public Service and Administration, at a very low point. We remain in mourning, following the tragic loss of our leader, the late Minister Collins Chabane.

What a visionary, what a pragmatist, what a unifying force and what a humanitarian he was!

It was an honour for me to have worked with Minister Chabane in his capacity as Minister for Public Service and Administration. Although it was for a short while, his presence had a profound impact to me personally and the staff of the portfolio as whole.

He was a visionary and demanded from us a deep reflection on the mandate of this portfolio and our responsibility to the communities who depend on us for a better service experience in every government department.

The pragmatist in him drove us hard to come up with innovative ways in which we can improve the efficiency of the public service. He encouraged the MPSA portfolio to pay special attention to the front-line service delivery as he believed that it was the section of the public service which needed the most attention.
This unique perspective on improving service delivery is one that understood public servants at the frontline to be in need of revitalisation through: direct engagement, capacity development and encouragement.

The humanitarian in him taught us to be always keenly aware and responsive to improving the working conditions of lower levels employees.

Minister Chabane the unifying force. He was able to come into the portfolio and within a short period of time was able to have such a positive impact within the organisation leading to everyone feeling that they are valued and that they could make a significant contribution in turning the public administration machinery around, for a greater efficiency.

As we remember him, we do so guided by the wisdom and humility of this great leader whose life was a true embodiment of the principles of Batho Pele.

Honourable House Chairperson, we wish to report-back to this House and our people on the undertakings we made during the budget Vote debate on the 17 July 2014, which are as follows:

Community Development Workers (CDWs)

Last year, we made a commitment that we would ensure that Community Development Workers (CDWs) support the programmes of the National Development Plan.

In the last financial year, CDWs continued to empower communities in public participation programmes. In Mpumalanga, CDWs facilitated community participation in the Integrated Development Planning processes. The province has also successfully developed a system that provides regular update on service delivery protest.

Community Development Workers in Kwazulu Natal were instrumental in mobilising the community to participate in meetings where the proposed municipal demarcation changes of wards were discussed. This reduced the number of community protests in the area.

On the same score, the Eastern Cape CDWs is assisting municipalities to speedily clear the backlogs of petitions submitted by communities.

Provinces continued to identify children who are outside the Early Childhood Development (ECD) programmes. To this effect Free State identified 1298 that were not attending school and are now in the ECD programme.

The North West CDWP hosted the Ward Based Planning summit in Dr. RS Mompati Municipality to enable local communities to effectively participate and monitor government local planning processes.

At this point, allow me to pause and pay tribute to our dearly departed veteran of the struggle, Dr Ruth Mompati. Mme Ruth was not only a freedom fighter but a gender activist, a mother to some and an impressionable revolutionary. Throughout her life, Dr Mompati worked to improve the lives of all South Africans as she dedicated her entire life to the liberation of our people.

We have made little progress in resolving the challenge of the location of the CDW programme, therefore making it difficult to derive the true value of the programme as was envisaged at inception.

Thusong Service Centres

Our previous budget vote in 2014 focused on reinventing government. This will continue to be the focus of how we transform the public service and administration portfolio. Our commitment of creating synergy between Thusong Service Centres (TSC) and other public participation programmes to enhance service delivery is on track. Based on the experiences of the Department of Home Affairs, we are more convinced of the need to investigate convenient service hours and locations to improve accessibility for citizens.

In September 2014, the Maponya Thusong Centre in Maponya Mall, in Soweto, was launched by the Deputy President.

NATIONAL SCHOOL OF GOVERNMENT

Honourable House Chairperson, professionalising the public service is no mean feat and can only be achieved through a uniform strategy in mandatory training; the establishment of a common vision and sense of purpose, maintenance of common Human Resources Development norms and enhanced learning.

In November 2014, the Minister approved a directive on compulsory capacity development, mandatory training days and minimum entry requirements for the Senior Management Service (SMS), which is to be implemented with effect from the 2016/17 financial year.

The NSG has been mandated with the implementation of this which must be completed by potential SMS members as a pre-entry certificate into the SMS. The NSG will, during the 2015/16 financial year, commence with processes towards giving effect to this directive in the subsequent years.

CENTRE FOR PUBLIC SERVICE INNOVATION

Honourable House Chairperson, the National Development Plan provides guidance by unpacking a number of key drivers for change, and what would constitute an enabling environment. Innovation, it says, should start to become pervasive across state, business and social sectors. Innovation should focus on improved public services, goods and services aimed at low-income sectors.

The Centre for Public Service Innovation, collaboratively explores service, process or product opportunities using research tools for gathering data and ideas from citizens, business, government departments, organisations, entities and international better practice. Thereafter determine the Design Funnel from screening alternative models and exploiting new technologies or materials to workable solutions for citizens.

We are pleased that as of 1 April 2015, The Centre for Public Service Innovation is a fully fledged government component, operating independently of the DPSA. This has had a percentage increase in the budget allocation for the CPSI and also that it can now explore other funding mechanisms.

The CPSI will continue to initiate new pilot projects and replicate innovations coming from our Public Sector Innovation Awards Programme.

Citizen Engagenemt/ Public Participation

Our citizen engagement priorities are found in the 1955 Freedom Charter, when we said, I quote, that: “ The People shall Govern: All people shall be entitled to take part in the administration of the country”.

It is only through social dialogue, public participation, access to information and decision making, as well as capacitating citizens to have a voice in influencing public policy making processes, that our endeavours are meaningful in transforming our society and citizen-government relationship.

To this end, we are immersed in the work of two international governance and accountability instruments namely; the Open Government Partnership and the African Peer Review Mechanism

OPEN GOVERNMENT PARTNERSHIP

Honourable House Chairperson, the country has, through the Open Government Partnership (OGP), assumed increasing responsibility and leadership in the global battle for openness and transparency. South Africa was elected to the position of Co-Chair of the Open-Government Partnership (OGP) Steering Committee from October 2014, with Mexico as the lead Chair.

In the year 2015-16 we will assume the position of the Lead Chair of the OGP an institution that has reflected a significant growth from 8 countries in 2011 to 65 countries in 2015.

Therefore, ladies and gentlemen, given the primacy of strengthening good governance locally in 2015 and beyond, we will focus on creating and strengthening mechanisms for on-going civil society and government interaction.

To this end, we have recently held consultative meetings with civil society on the OGP, which culminated in a proposed approach on how to institutionalise the social dialogue between government and civil society on OGP.We are currently in the process of consultation on the OGP Midterm Self-Assessment Report.

AFRICAN PEER REVIEW MECHANISM

The APRM is our demonstration to the world that in our continent leaders and citizens are committed to the highest levels of accountability.

In our capacity as host of the APRM Secretariat, we wish to report to this house that we are on track with finalising the host agreement.

We are pleased to inform you that we have completed the process of recruitment of all executive positions, except the position of the Chief Executive Officer for Africa Peer Review Mechanism, which we aim to conclude by June 2015, in time for the African Union Summit.

The absence of a permanent CEO has made it difficult to implement the APRM programme effectively and this has had a negative impact on the secretariat’s ability to collect member contributions.

It is reported that, the APRM does not have enough funds to last for the year. The situation is dire and as South Africa we have an obligation to make sure that we do not allow the situation to deteriorate any further. There is a role for the Portfolio Committee, through the Pan African Parliament, to support our efforts that are aimed at strengthening the APRM mechanisms for the sake of the continent.

Honourable House Chairperson, on a positive note, allow me to congratulate former Minister, Ms Bridget Mabandla, for her appointment to the Africa Peer Review Panel of Eminent Persons.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Honourable House Chairperson, I wish to thank the following for their role in making the MPSA a success:

our Acting-Minister, Honourable Nathi Mthethwa
Chairperson of the Public Service Commission Adv Sizane
the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration/Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation under the steady hand of Honourable Peace Mabe for keeping us on our toes.
Chairperson of the Boards for Government Employees Medical Schemes, Directors-Generals, Heads of MPSA Portfolios. The staff members across the MPSA portfolio
Civil Society organisations that work with us in the APRM and OGP.
Honourable Chairperson, we shall continue to pay homage to the late Minister Collins Chabane, and former Mayor of Vryburg Mme Ruth Mompati through our collective efforts towards building a public service that serves our people with humility and selflessness. We shall endeavour to give true meaning to the slogan “the people shall govern”

I thank you

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Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) response

Democratic Alliance (DA) response

 

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