REPORT OF THE
PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON DEFENCE AND MILITARY VETERANS ON THE REGULATIONS TO THE
MILITARY VETERANS ACT (Act 18 of 2011), dated 5 March 2014
The Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans (the Committee),
having considered the regulations to the Military Veterans Act (18 - 2011),
reports as follows:
1. In accordance with Section 24 (3) of
the Military Veterans Act (18-2011), draft regulations to said Act was tabled
in Parliament by the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans on 9 May 2013;
and thereafter referred to the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans
for consideration.
2. The Committee held three briefings with the
Department of Military Veterans (the Department) between June 2013 and February
2014, during which various challenges were identified and on which the
Department was requested to improve upon prior to the publication of these regulations
in the Government Gazette.
3. The Department received its budget allocation
upon completion of the draft regulations. Since the Department will not be able
to spend its entire budget before the end of the current financial year, the
Committee urges that the necessary application for funds to be rolled-over, is submitted to National Treasury (NT) timeously and
in accordance with National Treasury Regulations and the Public Finance
Management Act (PFMA). Furthermore, the
Department is also encouraged to interact with NT to ensure that the necessary
approvals are granted.
4. While mindful and in line with the functions
of the portfolio committee, the Committee could not amend said regulations. It
has however developed key recommendations which could assist the Department
with the efficient implementation of the Military Veterans Act (18-2011) as
well as the efficient provision of support services and benefits to military
veterans.
2. RECOMMENDATIONS
The
Committee requests that the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans ensures
that the
following recommendations are considered and due consideration is given to
their
implementation:
2.1 Section
2 – Requirements to qualify for benefits
2.1.1 The Department should ensure that the
qualifying criteria for benefits outlined in the regulations are beyond
contradiction and that deserving military veterans are not unnecessarily
excluded.
2.2 Section 4: Determination of the amount of
compensation and Section 5: Payment of Compensation
2.2.1 The Department should foster closer
co-operation with National Treasury which administers national pensions, to
ensure that military veterans receive all pensions or compensation entitled to
them and based on qualifying criteria.
2.3 Section
3: Compensation for injury, trauma and disease; Section 6: Criteria for the
counselling and treatment of mental illness and posttraumatic stress and
Section 7: Application for Counselling and treatment
2.3.1 The Committee stresses that counselling and
treatment services for military veterans should be prioritised and access to
such services should not be unnecessarily bureaucratised. The Department should ensure that military
veterans are provided with the necessary assistance, information, and
authorisation in order to receive quality health care services and treatment
when required.
2.4 Section
10: Facilitation of business opportunities and Section 11: Business
facilitation programmes
2.4.1 Qualifying criteria for access business
opportunities and programmes should be stringent to ensure that military
veterans benefit from such opportunities and that they are not exploited
through “fronting practices” by unscrupulous individuals. The necessary
amendments to departmental procurement policies should be made to include military
veterans’ business opportunities and to enable such facilitation.
2.5 Section
16: Criteria to qualify for burial support; Section 17: Amount of burial
support benefit, and Section 18: Re-imbursement for burial costs
2.5.1 The Department should ensure that reliable
and consistent information is provided to military veterans on the benefits or
support services the Department could lend families during the burial of a
loved one. Furthermore, the application procedure, the expected timeframes for
the processing of applications and the receipt of financial assistance should
be known.
2.6 Section
19: Procedure to apply for military veterans benefits
2.6.1 The Committee urges the Department to
ensure that all military veterans (statutory and non-statutory forces) are
included on one reliable and regularly updated database. This would ensure that
military veterans are recognised for their contribution and service to South
Africa and that the Department has a reliable record of required information
necessary to ensure that services and benefits are provided fairly to those military
veterans who are most deserving.
2.6.2 Application forms should be user-friendly
and easily understandable and available in all official languages. The
Department should be sensitive to limitations of military veterans and should
be able to provide the necessary assistance during the completion of application
forms. Additionally, the Department should explore the use of a fingerprint
system instead of a signature, in instances when a military veteran is not able
to read or write.
Report for
information.
PART
D: DOCKYARD SIMONSTOWN