Questions and Replies

Reply:

(a) The total number of road accident claims that have been lodged against the Road Accident Fund (RAF) and have been awaiting settlement, as at 9 October 2020, for more than (i) 10 years is 6 933 and (ii) five years is 39 214,

(b) the date on which the outstanding claims will finally be settled is unknown at this time due to the multitude of variables that are inherent in the adversarial, common-law, claims dispensation administered by the RAF, which variables include but are not limited to, delays attributable to claimants’ attorneys, amongst others, failing to locate the claimant in order to take instructions, failing to accept the RAF’s tender, failing to set the matter down for trial, failing to pursue the quantum aspect of the claim after a judgment has been obtained in respect of the merits (the liability aspect of the claim), failing to submit financial records or other substantiating evidence in support of a claim, and failing to submit actuarial reports in support of a claim; the non-availability of medical experts to assess claimants, compile reports and, or, testify in court; the failure by expert witnesses to agree on important aspects of the claim; the long lead time to obtain a trial date; and, the investigation by the RAF into potential fraudulent aspects of the claim; and

(c) although the aggregated total amount claimed in respect of the claims referred to in paragraphs (a)(i) and (ii) above is R49 985 029 061, the total amount it would take to settle (pay) all of the aforementioned claims is unknown at this time due to the multitude of variables that are inherent in the adversarial, common-law, claims dispensation administered by the RAF, which variables include but are not limited to, the claimant succeeding in proving the merits of the claim (where the claim was repudiated by the RAF); the apportionment of fault as determined by the court (where the percentage contributory negligence was in dispute, or where a third party was joined on the basis of his, her or its alleged contributory negligence); amendment by the claimant of the claimed amount based on, inter alia, fresh medico-legal or other expert reports, or new medico-legal or other expert reports, or new case law, or amendments to legislation; receipt by the claimant of a collateral benefit, which may qualify for deduction from the claimed amount; receipt by the claimant of an accelerated benefit, which may qualify for deduction from the claimed amount; determination by the Compensation Commissioner of the workman’s claim, which may qualify for deduction from the claimed amount; a change in the employment status of the claimant, which may have a bearing on the basis of calculation of the claimed amount; a change in the rehabilitation outcome of the claimant, which may have a bearing on the basis of calculation of the claimed amount; the death of the claimant, prior to settlement or the court order; as regards a claim for non-pecuniary loss, the timing of the death of the claimant, prior to, or after, close of pleadings, which may have a bearing on the right to, and calculation, of amount claimed in respect of non-pecuniary loss; settlement reached between the RAF and the claimant and, or, the sum awarded by the court; the outcome of appeals and reviews, in respect of orders by the lower courts; the application of the statutory limit on the quantum of claims for loss of support or loss of income; adjustments to the amount claimed to provide for inflation; the issuing by the RAF of an undertaking, instead of making payment of a lump-sum in respect of the costs of future medical expenses; and, where agreed, the payment of loss of income or loss of support in instalments.

Reply:

(1)(a) The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA), submitted the Moloto Rail Corridor, Public Private Partnership (PPP), Treasury Approval 1 application to National Treasury for consideration, on 30 October 2014. On 3 December 2015, the Director General of National Treasury responded to the CEO of PRASA informing him that the Treasury Approval 1 application was not granted.

(2)(a) Membership of the Political Oversight Committee (POC) consisted of political representatives at the level of Minister/Member of the Executive Council/Executive Mayor and representatives from Departments, as follows:

• Department of Economic Development;
• Department of Finance or National Treasury;
• Department of Trade and Industry;
• Department of Water and Environmental Affairs;
• Department of Rural Development & Land Reform
• Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport;
• Limpopo Department of Roads and Transport;
• Mpumalanga Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport;
• Nkangala District Municipality;
• Sekhukhune District Municipality;
• City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality;
• Thembisile Hani Local Municipality
• Dr JS Moroka Local Municipality
• Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Committee (PICC) – Strategic Infrastructure Project 1 (SIP1) Coordinator

(2)(b) The Chairperson of the Political Oversight Committee was the Minister of Transport.

Reply:

1. Yes, the NRS 047 and the relevant NRS 048 specifications are attached.

2. In terms of the license condition 5.4.1 the Energy Regulator is entitled to collect information such as the maintenance plans of the licensee, the process of collecting and examining such information is always undertaken during the annual compliance audits that the Regulator conducts on selected licensees each year. The City of Ekurhulenihad not been audited before, and had therefore not submitted its maintenance plants. It is however on the list of the licensees to be audited during this financial year.

3. According to license condition 5.3.2, the licensee is required to always prepare the maintenance plans annually and adhere to this, however it is not the requirement for the licensee to submit the report to the regulator annually. The maintenance plans are scrutinised when the licensee is selected for a compliance audit.

Reply:

1.

a) An independent technical audit of Ekurhuleni was done in January 2006. Another audit was done in 2020 but the focus was on the business assessment.

b) The report on the independent technical audit was submitted in the same year in May 2006. Due to COVID induced travel restrictions that was in place when the business assessment was done, the site inspection on the audit conducted in 2020 will be done in early 2021.The draft report of the business assessment will be sent to the Licensee by the end of November 2020.

c) It was recommended that:

1. There must be investment in the maintenance and the refurbishment of the networks and on skilled staff.
2. The Department must operate as an integrated entity.
3. The maintenance and refurbishment plans must also be integrated.

d) According to our knowledge, there were 45 intake points in 2005/6 and there are now 55 intake points.

Increased Infrastructure

The Department of Energy has since 2006 increased its infrastructure in the various Depots in Ekurhuleni as follows:-

Electrification of Subsidized Households	High Mast Lights	Street Lights	Substations
92 161	977	15 458	Upgrading/Construction of 13 Substations

The 92 161 additional connections excludes town planning development connections for non-subsidized households, which also forms part of the electricity grid and infrastructure to be maintained by the Department.

2. NERSA requests all audited licensees to develop Corrective Action Plans so that this can be monitored. The same will happen with Ekurhuleni Metro when the site inspection has been done and a final report has been shared with the Licensee. One of the objectives of the NERSA audits is to encourage licensees to do self-monitoring so that the networks do not deteriorate.

Reply:

Honourable Member, any assistance required by our communities is rendered by municipalities. Should a municipality have difficulties, it approaches the Water Board that services the area. In this case, Magalies Water would assist the municipality.

I wish to point out that the legislative mandate of the Department of Water and Sanitation is to ensure that the country’s water resources are protected, managed, used, developed, conserved and controlled in a sustainable manner for the benefit of all people and the environment.

The Water Services Act, 1997 refers to municipalities as Water Service Authorities (WSAs) responsible for distribution (reticulation) of water and to supply sanitation services. The Water Services Act in section 3 outlines the right of access to basic water supply and sanitation which mandates that “everyone has a right of access to basic water supply and basic sanitation” and places the responsibility on Water Services Authorities to ensure that they develop a Water Services Development Plan (WSDP) to ensure the realisation of this right.

Section 11 of the Water Services Act, 1997 mandates that “every Water Services Authority has the duty to all consumers or potential consumers in its area of jurisdiction to progressively ensure efficient, affordable, economical and sustainable access to water services.”

.

Reply:

(1) Please see attachment.

(2) Yes.

(3) The provinces are busy triangulating and verifying the information when learners sit for examination. 

Reply:

Before a mining right is granted, a thorough consultation with interested and affected parties including other government department is conducted. In a situation where there are communities, and are to be relocated, a consultation process/Public participation should be undertaken by the mine or by an applicant for a mining right.

An all-inclusive method(s) should be utilised to ensure that community groups can take part in the consultation process in a fair and transparent manner.

 

Reply:

The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) does not consider the Orange River as being under drought conditions and there are no water restrictions imposed on water resource use in the upper Orange River catchment. Therefore, no special drought plans are under consideration. However, the Orange River does have seasonal variations in terms of flow, with lower flows experienced in late winter. Alternative sources such as boreholes and springs are developed and utilised as alternate standby sources.

The Department is aware that the Joe Gqabi District Municipality (JGDM) does have water distribution constraints to the extent that there is a moratorium on further developments until the water services are upgraded in line with the Aliwal North Water Master Plan. The Joe Gqabi District Municipality does have short and medium term plans to improve water services in the area as follows:

a) Two projects already commenced with are the construction of two raw water off-channel storage dams at the water works (MIG funded) and replacement of asbestos cement bulk pipeline and leaking valves (WSIG funded),

b) Funding is currently still being sought for further short term plans to:

• Build a new 2 Ml Clear Water Sump and install a high lift pump at the WTW,
• Build a 1,2Ml reservoir and a 400kl elevated tank at the springs; and install a high pressure gravity main.

c) Medium Term Plans:

• Upgrade of WTW by 2,5Ml and installation of a desalination/package plant at the springs,
• Replacement of the old 200mm asbestos cement rising main and upgrade of pump station and main reservoir at the springs.

Reply:

(a) There has been no increase (0%) on the Bulk Water Charges imposed on all Water Boards for the 2020/21 financial year. The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has also committed R600m in relief funds that will be distributed to cash strapped Water Boards. These funds will also go some way in helping the Water Boards to absorb the increase in raw water charges.

(b) Significant concessions have been given to the Domestic and Industry Sector with regards to Raw Water Use Charges. In terms of Water Resource Management Charges (WRMC), if the charges had been approved in line with the policy (Raw Water Pricing Strategy), the charges would have been increased by a maximum of fifty-six percent (56%). In terms of Water Resource Infrastructure Charges (WRIC), a maximum increase of 16.5% would also have been approved. The Capital Unit Charge (CUC) which is the charged levied on users that take water from schemes that are funded off-budget has not been increased for the 2020/21 financial year. The zero percent (0%) increase has been imposed on those schemes that supply water to domestic users.

It is important to note that all these concessions have had a negative impact on the performance of the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) in relation to water resource management functions, water resource infrastructure development and maintenance. The DWS provides assistance to the municipalities through the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) and the Municipal Water Infrastructure Grant (MWIG) for the development of new infrastructure and refurbishment thereof to ensure provision of clean Water.

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

Yes, the Department owns the property in question.

a) The site is made up of 4 erven and the total size is 3 830m².

b) It is currently occupied by the Departmental official (Director: Property Management in the Cape Town Regional Office)

I was informed that request to occupy the state-owned property was authorised in April 2018 by the then Regional Manager, Mr F Johnson, then Chief Director Mr B Kgasoane and Mr B Matutle, then Deputy Director-General IGC.

I have requested the Acting Director-General, Mr I Fazel, to investigate the matter.

Reply:

The Poultry Master Plan was developed with input from the African Farmers Association of SA (AFASA) and the SA Poultry Association (SAPA), together with other stakeholders such as organised labour, importers and public entities.

In the initial phase of the Master Plan implementation, the focus has been on tariff adjustments to protect the sector, accompanied by the expansion of domestic investment to increase output. The industry was set targets for promotion of black-owned poultry farms. In all three areas, progress has been made: poultry tariffs were increased in February 2020, investment of over R750 million has been put into the sector and local production of chickens has increased in the past eight months.

In the next phase of implementation, a proposal is being developed for a localisation designation to enable state-entities to ensure that poultry used within the state (eg at hospitals) is procured from local producers. Once this phase has been implemented, data on the levels of participation by poultry producers can be collected.

The Poultry Master Plan has the objective inter alia of promoting transformation across the full value-chain particularly among integrated producers, to ensure that the presence of black South Africans are not limited to poultry farming, where returns are in many cases modest. The DTIC has not in the past collected detailed data on ownership in the poultry feed sector – however, with the focus in the Master Plan on transformation, this will be done in future, bringing together information across different public entities and sister departments.

-END-

Reply:

The reality of COVID-19 is unacceptable to all concerned but, recommendations to Cabinet on the opening of schools was made based on the advice provided by the Scientists in this field. The reality of COVID-19, is that there is no vaccine available in the short-term, and therefore the options available is to close schools indefinitely and live with the consequences of long term learning losses across the education system or follow the best advice on how we could co-exist with the virus. We are doing the best we can to ensure the safety of our learners and teachers and we will continue to be advised by the Department of Health, with its group of expert scientists. The current environment is not the most conducive to teaching and learning, but reports that we receive on an ongoing basis indicate that teaching and learning is taking place and we will closely monitor the situation in our schools and act appropriately, which will always be in the best interest of our learners and teachers.        

Reply:

a) The Department provided its views in terms of the potential impact that the merger between Seriti Resources Holdings and SA Energy Coal may likely have on the energy coal sector. Amongst others, these views included: (i) the potential impact the merger might have on security of coal supply, particularly on Eskom electricity generation requirements;(ii) the electricity pricing effects the merger might have on the economy given the current socio economic challenges the country is confronted with.

b) Security of coal supply is of primary importance to ensure Eskom meets the demand for electricity. Eskom for the past three years embarked on coal procurement exercise to ensure that long term coal supply agreements are secured for the majority of the coal fired power stations. Ownership and access to the state’s mineral assets is effective through the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act, 2002 (MRPDA) and Mining Charter. The DMRE is the authority in terms of determining effective ownership of these assets. The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) intervenes through the Competition Commission if there are likely effects of substantially lessening or prevention of competition in the sector.

Eskom on Managing Risk

1. Eskom estimates that the Seriti supply share after the transaction would increase to approximately 28% from 17% based on FY2020 delivery volumes. It is estimated that the two largest suppliers will account for approximately 55% of Eskom’s coal supply based on FY2020 delivery volumes. However, this may vary slightly subject to changes in Eskom’s coal demand and the mines’ production profiles.

2. Approximately 28% of Eskom’s supply is supplied from the cost plus mines. Post the Seriti/South32 merger, this percentage will remain the same and is approximately half of the 55% of the post-merger supply. Under the cost plus arrangement, Eskom is responsible for the majority of the operating, capital and rehabilitation costs of these mines. The supply risk also resides with Eskom.

3. The remaining 27% of supply from the two largest suppliers (post-merger) would be from fixed price long term and medium term contracts. These are arm’s length contracts where, the mine is responsible for the capital and operational expenditure as well as all the associated mining risks. Should the supplier not deliver as per the contractual terms and conditions, there are contractual recourses including but not limited to the rectification of undersupply and penalties. Approximately 80% of the 27% mentioned above mainly relates to the coal supply to Medupi and Matimba Power Stations, which are supplied by Exxaro. There is an excess 16 Mton coal stockpile at Medupi which could cater for any short term coal supply risk at Medupi or Matimba.

Reply:

a)  (i) The temporary electricity distribution licence granted to City of Ekurhuleni is still valid as it has two extension letters of which the second extension letter, dated 8 May 2007, extents the licence until 36 months after the promulgation of the Licensing Regulation made under the Electricity Regulation Act, 2006 (Act. No 4 of 2006). Until the Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy promulgates the Licensing Regulations, the temporary licences remain valid.

(ii)Refer to (i) above.

b) There are no legal implications for the City of Ekurhuleni operating with a temporary licence, as it was issued and extended by NERSA in line with section 4 (a) of the Electricity Regulation Act, 2006 (Act. No 4 of 2006).

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

Road construction is the responsibility of the Provincial Department therefore the question should be referred to the MEC of the relevant Province.

Reply:

I have been furnished with a reply to the question submitted, by Ms Thabang Mampane, Commissioner of the National Lotteries Commission, which is set out below. I advise that it has been clarified by the NLC that the (1)(b) below refers to the NLC Senior Manager : Financial Accounting.

Reply by Commissioner Mampane:

“(1)(a) The NLC has an approved investment policy in compliance with Treasury Regulation 31.3.1. Investments are made in terms of the investment policy approved by the NLC Board.

(b) Investments are managed by the NLC.

(c) The performance of investments is monitored on a monthly basis.

(2)(a)(i) No investments have been written off. (ii) Not applicable

(b) Not applicable

(3) The National Lotteries Commission is a Public Finance Management Act, Act 1 of 1999, Schedule 3A entity. It does not receive funding from the fiscus. The investments support the organisation as follows –

• sustains the operations of the organization during licence transitions where the uptake in ticket sales demonstrates low performance (The reserve strategy is aimed at sustaining the organisation for a period of twelve months in instances where there is no revenue flowing into the organization);
• Supplements the grant allocations as the interest received from investments is utilized towards funding the operational expenditure of the organisation which means that more money is allocated towards grant allocations.”

-END-

Reply:

a) The requirements as it relates to borrow pits are not informed by the nature of ownership of the land over which they are to be undertaken, but the distinction revolves around the entity that intends to undertake such borrow pit activities. The distinction is in the following manner.;If a natural person or an entity that intends to undertake the borrow pit activities does not form part of those that are not exempted in terms of Section 106 of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (Act 28 of 2002), they will be required to lodge an application for either a mining permit(Where the area does not exceed 5 hectares and the period of activities may not be longer than the period for which a mining permit can be valid for) or a Mining right (Where the area exceeds 5 hectares and the activities may take longer than the period provided for mining permit). It is important to highlight that the applications for either mining permit or mining right are to be lodged simultaneously with the application for Environmental Authorization in terms of the National Environmental Management Act (Act 107 of 1998).

In case of entities, that are exempted from applying for either a mining permit or a mining right in terms of Section 106 of the MPRDA, they were previously only required to submit the application for an environmental authorization, however following the delisting of this activity from the listing notices, they are currently under no obligation to submit such unless if any of the activities to be undertaking over and above the mining of material may fall under the listing notices.

b) As indicated above, the requirements are not informed by the nature of land ownership. Whether it’s Private or State-owned land, the requirements as outlined above would apply.

(c) The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy is the authority responsible for ensuring compliance by the entities/persons that are undertaking borrow pits activities. It is however imperative to highlight that following the delisting of activities exempted in terms of Section 106 of the MPRDA IN 2017, the activities that are currently undertaken by the exempted State Owned Entities are excluded from this compliance monitoring, although the DMRE and the Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries have now embarked on a process of effecting the amendments to overcome this gap. The draft documents are already in place and DEFF is in the process of finalizing the same to enable the DMRE to resume this responsibility of regulating the entities that are exempted from applying for either mining permits or mining rights.

d) The measures to ensure compliance are invoked as necessitated by the nature of non-compliance and differs from one case to the other. This may amongst others include, a Compliance Notice being issued in terms of Section 31L of NEMA with the instructions for corrective measures/steps to be effected. Failure to adhere to these administrative measures in terms of NEMA may also lead to Criminal measures being invoked.

In a case where the said borrow pit would have necessitated that the mining permit or mining right be issued (those that are not exempted in terms of Section 106 of the MPRDA), the said activity may also be suspended in terms of MPRDA. In severe cases of non-compliance, such a mining permit or mining right may be cancelled in terms of Section 47 of the MPRDA, after all the due administrative processes have been followed.

e) Firstly, if the nature of non-compliance warrants that the DMRE should take the appropriate steps as provided for in the legislation, such a family may bring the aspect to the Department’s attention, so that the measures as outlined above can be considered.

(2) With regard to the six children who have reportedly died in three borrow pits in the Moretele Local Municipality, North West, in the past few years, what (a) measures is his department taking to ensure that there is stricter compliance and enforcement and (b) support will his department provide to the families of the deceased children if the deaths were found to have been preventable and due to negligence and/or non-compliance?

Reply

1. The Department will conduct an investigation to establish the facts before responding comprehensively.

(b) It is imperative to be familiar with the actual circumstances in order to offer appropriate assistance.

 

Reply:

I have been furnished with a reply to the question submitted, by Ms Thabang Mampane, Commissioner of the National Lotteries Commission, which is set out below. In light of the challenges faced by many South Africans as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, I will be requesting a review of the reserves policy.

The reply of the NLC Commissioner follows:

1. The National Lotteries Commission is a Public Finance Management Act, Act 1 of 1999, Schedule 3A entity. The NLC was established with the primary mandate of regulating lotteries and sports pools. From that regulatory activity, the NLC is enabled to distribute funds destined for good causes.

The NLC does not receive funding from the fiscus. The main source of revenue is derived from the share of National Lottery ticket sales from the Operator. The investments (that is, reserves) aim to sustain the operations of the organization during Licence transitions where revenue received from the National Lottery Operator is low as observed in the previous two licenses. Also in instances where the Operator may not operate. The reserves will supplement the grant allocations for good causes and the operational costs of the organisation for a period of twelve (12) months in instances where there is no revenue flowing into the organisation. This will ensure that the NLC continues to deliver on its mandate.

Section 25 of the Lotteries Act allows the NLC to invest any money which is not required for immediate allocation. Investment income diversifies the organization’s Revenue and mitigates the risk of a single source of revenue derived from a share of National Lottery ticket sales. Investment income therefore significantly contributes towards funding the operational expenditure of the organisation, consequently the NLC is able to maximize contribution to fund good causes through grant allocations.

2. and (3) During the 2019/20 financial year, the NLC had only one investment with Rand Merchant Bank which had an initial investment period of five years. The investment has subsequently matured and the NLC is in the process of re-investing.”

-END-

Reply:

I am advised by the Department as follows:

a) In the previous reply, the reference to “funding approval” refers to applications from the Mpumalanga Economic Growth Agency/Ekandustria Industrial Park for funding for the second phase, from funds available within the dtic budget. The application for funding for Ekandustria Industrial Park was presented to the dtic Critical Infrastructure programme and referred back on for the Industrial Parks Management - Mpumalanga Growth Agency (MEGA) to provide supporting information on a number of areas including the following:

1. A maintenance plan for the industrial park;
2. Investment promotion and potential investors pipeline;
3. Security measures to be put in place to attend to continuous crime in the industrial park; and
4. Progress on restoring the waste-water treatment plant which was revitalised in phase 1 and has since been decommissioned due to crime.

The Critical Infrastructure Programme referred back the Application for Phase 2 for Ekandustria on 3 July 2018, for additional information that was required. the dtic and the DBSA engaged the Mpumalanga Economic Growth Agency MEGA and sent written communication on 27 August, 2018. The revised application has since been received on 10 November, 2020.

The Ekandustria Industrial Park has had significant challenges with several service delivery protests that impacted the revitalization programme, resulting in work stoppages during the first phase and protests continued after the first phase had been completed. The management of MEGA decided to slow down the revitalization process during this time due to the risk that would impact on the assets, the staff of MEGA and the Construction team.

Should the application meet on the necessary requirements it will be presented to the next sitting of the Critical Infrastructure Programme for funding in the fourth quarter.

b) Further phases are dependent on the urgent needs of the industrial park and the programme responds to the applications submitted. A guide for the phases is as follows –

Phase 1: Security infrastructure upgrade, fencing, lighting, critical top structures and electrical requirements - The first phase requirements was requested by the industrial parks management agencies who have been experiencing high crime levels.

Phase 2: Compliance to regulatory requirements – Landfill sites; Waste and Water treatment plants, Fire, Health & Safety Requirements, and Renewable energy initiatives.

Phase 3: Engineering designs and construction of new and existing roads, bulk water supply and sewage treatment plants or industrial effluent control.

Phase 4: Upgrading electricity infrastructure, and build new top structures in line with the expansion programme of the Parks.

Phase 5: Development of vacant land and sustainable industrial clusters in the Parks.

(c)&(d) The budgetary estimates for expenditure and the quantum in Rand of funding approved in the 2020-2021 financial year is not available as the dtic has not approved any application for the Ekandustria Industrial Park yet.

-END-

Reply:

As per the Ministerial Handbook, official vehicles are provided to Ministers and Deputy Ministers in order for them to carry out their official duties. In instances where official vehicles are not available, vehicles are then hired.

As per our records, cars were hired for Minister Ebrahim Patel for use in cities where no official vehicle was available, as follows:

Minister Ebrahim Patel

Place of hire	Travel date	Return date	Amount (R)	Supplier Name
Port Elizabeth	25-Jul-19	25-Jul-19	1 565,73	Phakisa world fleet Solutions Isando (Hwt.Pks)
Durban	12-Jul-19	13-Jul-19	1 771,81	Phakisa world fleet Solutions Isando (Hwt.Pks)
Durban	14-Sep-19	15-Sep-19	3 932,35	Woodford Car And Bakkie Hire (Hwt.Wch)
Durban	4-Oct-19	4-Oct-19	2 970,68	Woodford Car And Bakkie Hire (Hwt.Wch)
Durban	16-Oct-19	18-Oct-19	6 363,34	Woodford Car And Bakkie Hire (Hwt.Wch)
Total			16 603,91

The records for the Deputy Ministers are still being collated and will be provided as a supplementary reply as soon as possible.

-END-

Reply:

Honourable Member, the legislative mandate of the Department of Water and Sanitation is to ensure that the country’s water resources are protected, managed, used, developed, conserved and controlled in a sustainable manner for the benefit of all people and the environment.

The Water Services Act, 1997 refers to municipalities as Water Service Authorities (WSAs) responsible for distribution (reticulation) of water and to supply sanitation services. The Water Services Act in section 3 outlines the right of access to basic water supply and sanitation which mandates that “everyone has a right of access to basic water supply and basic sanitation” and places the responsibility on Water Services Authorities to ensure that they develop a Water Services Development Plan (WSDP) to ensure the realisation of this right.

Section 11 of the Water Services Act, 1997 mandates that “every Water Services Authority has the duty to all consumers or potential consumers in its area of jurisdiction to progressively ensure efficient, affordable, economical and sustainable access to water services.”

Therefore, any assistance required by our communities is rendered by municipalities. Should a municipality have difficulties, it approaches the Water Board that services the area. In this case, Magalies Water would assist the municipality.

Notwithstanding the above, I have been informed that the Madibeng Local Municipality has procured and installed three (3) 10 000 litre water tanks to ensure access to clean water, and that these are filled with water on a regular basis.

 

Reply:

1. The Honourable Member should know that our intervention regarding safety and security at schools are not localised, but are national.  The National School Safety Framework (NSSF) remains our primary strategic response to school violence. It is a  comprehensive approach that coordinates and consolidates all school safety interventions in the sector.  The NSSF is based on a social ecological systems model which locates the school within its broader community.  It relies on collaboration and partnership for more coordinated approach to responding to school violence. 

2.The Department of Basic Education, through the School Safety Directorate has established a platform (What-App Group) for ongoing mentoring of schools. 

3. The Department of Basic education through School Safety Committees and Quality Learning and Teaching Campaign (QLTC) is mobilising communities, including Mopani District communities towards ownership of schools as community centres and future plans include a move towards encouraging communities towards mobilizing the alumni to adopt the schools which they previously attended that contributed to their education foundation to rekindle the love of education by both the youth and the communities

4. The  Department rolled out Bullying Prevention and Positive Discipline programmes in all Limpopo Education Districts, including Mopani District partnership with Active Education to address incidences of violence, homophobic bullying and cyber-bullying in particular.

5. Safety Committees at local levels and QLTC constantly run campaign to encourages the community participation to foster common identity and building social cohesion and make schools centres of our heritage

6. Communities are encouraged to protect the schools from criminal elements by participating in Community Policing Forums (CPFs), through the existing DBE Protocol Partnership with the South African Police Service (SAPS).

Reply:

1. The Department does not have specific date at which the refinery is scheduled to start operating, what was shared with the Department from Astron Energy is that the assessments of the incident arestill ongoing and there is no firm date of when the refinery would come back to be operational.
2. Safety and environmental inspectionsand/or audit do not fall within the ambit of the Department of Mineral, Resources and Energy.

Reply:

1. The Department of Mineral, Resources and Energy does not conduct any environmental audits, as these fall under different departments.

2. The refinery is not operational at the moment, however in terms of the Petroleum Products Act, the refinery was compliant prior to the incident.

Reply:

I have been furnished with a reply to the question submitted, by Ms Thabang Mampane, Commissioner of the National Lotteries Commission, which is reproduced below.

“(1)(a) In the 2019/20 financial year the NLC achieved a return of 8,42%.

(b) In terms of Generally Recognised Accounting Practice (GRAP) 104, the NLC had fair value adjustment of R9,2 million during the 2019/20 financial year.

(2)(a) The NLC has an approved investment policy in compliance with Treasury Regulation 31.3.1. The following principles are noted from the approved investment policy-

i) The pillars of the investment policy include amongst other Capital Preservation and maximization of returns.

ii) Monies that may be placed in long term investment products should be with banks that have bank guaranteed deposits

(b) In accordance with the approved investment policy, NLC investments in maturity periods of between 3 months to long-term of 5 years.

(c) The banks with which NLC invests are rated by the various rating agencies. The investment quality is determined by the investment ratings given by the rating agencies.

(d) The NLC is guided by an approved investment policy. Investments that do not have capital preservation are not permitted.”

-END-

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

1. The National Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI)

Financial years	2017/2018	2018/2019	2019/2020	2020/2021
a) Financial misconduct b) Irregular expenditure c) Failure to comply with procurement procedures,	43 employees found guilty 26out of 43 employees reported above committed irregular expenditure 24out of 43 employees reported above found guilty for non-compliance with procurement procedures	50employees found guilty 40 out of 50employees reported abovecommitted irregular expenditure 35 out of 50employees reported above found guilty of non-compliance to procurement procedures	27 employees found guilty 10 out of 27 employees reported above committed irregular expenditure 10 out of 27 reported above found guilty for non-compliance with procurement procedures	7 employees found guilty 2 out of 7 employees reported abovecommitted irregular expenditure 1 out of 7employees reported above found guilty of non-compliance with procurement procedures
d) Abuse of sick leave	0	0	0	0
e) Poor work performance	0	0	0	0
f) Theft	0	1employee found guilty of theft	2 employees found guilty of theft	0
g) Sexual misconduct	0	0	1 employee found guilty of sexual harassment	0

The National Department of Public Works and Infrastructure does not have access to disciplinary records of Provincial Departments.

2. (a) The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) does not have a mechanisms for establishing a national blacklisting register which can be consulted by government institutions. The Department of Public Service and Administration(DPSA) is responsible for overseeing misconduct cases across government. The DPWI relies on the PERSAL system which is monitored by the DPSA together with the National Treasury upon which we are able to detect during appointments the status of employees who were either found guilty or not of misconduct in the public service.

The current mechanism (PERSAL System) is effective and reliable in providing disciplinary records of employees but it is utilized internally for the DPWI.

Reply:

1. Saldanha Terminal

(1)     For each storage facility owned, leased and/or operated by the Strategic Fuel Fund, (a) on what date was the last (i) maintenance and (ii) refurbishment undertaken on the storage tanks and (b) what was the cost of such maintenance and/or refurbishment in each case;

• Saldanha Terminal is made of Concrete Underground Closed tanks which do not require maintenance or refurbishments on the Saldanha tanks. There are however scheduled inspections to test the tanks structure and roof supports. In all inspections done to date there were NO abnormalities that were detected. This include the tank settlement test that was done in 2016, where no discernible changes since commissioning were observed.

(2) (a) on what date was each specified facility last audited for environmental compliance and (b) what were the findings of the last environmental audit in each case;

(a) The last full recertification Audit was conducted by SABS on ISO14001 2015 on the 10TH to the 13TH March 2020

(b) One “minor” finding was issued and cleared by SFF Saldanha and we have thus been recertified under the new ISO 140001 2015 StandardCertificate}.

(3)   whether there are any indications of seepage into the ground and/or the groundwater table; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are

the relevant details of the seepage?

A “Ground water sampling” exercise is done bi-annually and the last one was done in May 2019 and there is no seepage detected to date.

​​2. ​Milnerton Terminal

1. For each storage facility owned, leased and/or operated by the Strategic Fuel Fund;

a) on what date was the last Maintenance:

(i) Maintenance of the SFF Milnerton tank farm is an on-going exercise based on a schedule created as per the operating and manufacturers specification of a particular equipment. These schedules are distributed from the Maintenance planner’s office to the relevant staff (electrical or mechanical). Another form of maintenance is “adhoc” as and when a breakdown occurs it is attended to.

(ii) 1999 - 2002

• During this period 11 tanks were refurbished.

​b) For each storage facility owned, leased and/or operated by the Strategic Fuel Fund, what was the cost of such maintenance and/or refurbishment in each case:

• SFF paid market related costs as obtained following its approved tender process.

2. On what date was each specified facility last audited for environmental compliance:

a) An “Environmental Legal Compliance Audit” is conducted bi-annually and the last audit was done in June 2019.

b) The results of these audit was 2 minor findings that were closed-off and terminal received certification.

3. Whether there are any indications of seepage into the ground and/or the groundwater table; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details of the seepage?

• A “Ground water sampling” exercise is done bi-annually and the last one was done in December 2019 and there is no seepage detected to date,

 

Reply:

The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture does not deal with lease agreements it is the purview of the department of Public Works and Infrastructure.

Reply:

(a). The composition of the tribunal will be determined by the National Heritage Resources Act 25 of 1999.

(b). The work of the tribunal will commence upon the outcome of the national audit that will be conducted by the South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) as mandated by my department.

Reply:

Questions 1173 was responded to and the status remains.

For the outstanding questions 954, 955, 956 and 960 I will write a letter to the President of SASCOC to impress upon them, their obligation to respond to questions posed by Members of Parliament.

Reply:

(a). My Department is already implementing the Presidential Employment Stimulus Program (PESP) as part of the economic recovery plan. Amongst the programs that are being implemented by the Department’s film development agency – the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is a program on job retention in the audio-visual industry. The program is meant to support and counteract the anticipated job losses and to stimulate economic activity.

The other stream within the program is that of employment creation initiatives for creative & cultural practitioners to support their outputs. This includes (but is not limited to) supporting innovation in digitisation efforts for content creation and the dissemination and development of e-commerce products and services. It should however be noted that the work of the SABC practitioners is largely focused on journalism and creation of current news.

(b). Given the current difficult economic environment that is affecting all industries, job loss is something that has become inevitable. Much as the creative industry is one of the hardest hit industries but it also has the potential of being, the most resilient given its innovative nature and the capacity to survive on freelance work. The implementation of the above-mentioned programs is meant as an effort to address the precariousness of workers in the cultural and creative industries. The second wave of the COVID-19 relief program continues to cater for the independent contractors. Further, the Department has embarked on the development of the Cultural and Creative Master Plan process will introduce short, medium and long-term interventions for the sustainability of the Industry.

Reply:

Questions 2113 was responded to, the status quo remains the same.

For the outstanding question 2109 and 2112 I will write a letter to the President of SASCOC to impress upon them their obligation to respond to questions posed by Members of Parliament.

Reply:

1. The NAC did not fail to pay the 25%. The National Arts Council pays the 25% based upon beneficiaries reporting for the first instalment and or second instalment disbursed. The disbursement is not automatic, it is subject to beneficiaries accounting and reporting for the funds already disbursed. The funds that have been disbursed already need to be accounted for by beneficiaries before the 25% can be paid. Some of the funding (representing 25% on the balance of their grant) has already been paid (R444 957) to 24 beneficiaries.

2. 61 Beneficiaries were originally earmarked for 25% calculated based on the balance remaining after claiming the first and or the second tranche. Some beneficiaries disputed 25% because of poor understanding and/ or lack of communication from either the part of the NAC or beneficiaries as to whether their project would be able to continue during lockdown. The funding has subsequently been approved to be disbursed to the affected beneficiaries. Beneficiaries are required to report on the first and/ or second tranches paid; and in addition, submit updated tax clearance certificates before grant funds can be paid out.

3. The NAC contract does not have a force majeur clause. The contract was not breached because the National Disaster Act took precedence over any contract where beneficiaries could not implement the work funded.

4. A sample on the NAC contract is attached to this response.

5. The NAC has engaged with the relevant beneficiaries. Beneficiaries, whose grant funds are due, will be fully reimbursed subject to them reporting on funds already disbursed and upon submitting valid tax clearance certificates.

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

1. (a) None. (b) In Pretoria there is one former Deputy Minister.
2. (a) None. (b) In Pretoria we have Mr Gert C. Oosthuizen, former Deputy Minister of Sport and Recreation.
3. (a) None. (b) In Pretoria the Departments’ Valuations Unit made a determination for a market related rental to the value of R480,000.00 which has been raised as a debt against Mr Gert C. Oosthuizen, former Deputy Minister of Sport and Recreation.

Reply:

(a). The name Jamestown in the Eastern Cape, has been changed to James Calata. The Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture approved the name change on 29 April 2015.

(b) It was published in the Government Gazette No 3920, Notice Number 831 of 11 September 2015.

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

1. I was informed by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) that a total number of 360 new beds were procured by the Department for the three parliamentary villages.

2. Yes, the beds are intended for the main bedroom of all residences occupied by Members of Parliament at the three parliamentary villages.

(a) A total of 235 beds are intended for Acacia Park, a total of 56 beds are intended for Laboria Park and a total of 69 beds are intended for Pelican Park;

(b) All the beds of the main bedroom of Members of Parliament are entitled to replacement, unless a Member of Parliament feels that the bed does not require replacement;

(c) The value of the bed contract is R1,787,514.72;

(d) The contract for the provision of beds was awarded to Huracan term contract

3. This particular contract does not include any other items for the houses.

4. No, the Department does not have any plans to procure additional items for the specified houses as there is no need for it at the moment and the lifespan of the current items are still valid.

Reply:

1. I have directed the Director General to get the audited financial statements and forward them to the honourable Member.

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

The Government Immovable Asset Management Act 19 of 2007 (GIAMA) requires custodians and users to observe principles of immovable asset management, as strategic asset strategic planning instruments including prioritization.

The department has put in place a number of programmes to prioritise the construction and/or renovation of SA Police Stations across the country namely, the Repair and Refurbishment Programme and Client Capital Programme.

Current Stages	Repair and Refurbishment	Client Capital	Total Per Stage
	No. off	No. off
Design (Status 4)	56	150	206
Construction (Status 5B)	38	25	63
Total Per Programme	94	175

The department has a number of projects in the design phase and construction phase to respond to the client’s needs. The high level plans are as follows:

Reply:

Questions 1530, 1613 and 1614 were responded to, the status quo remains the same.

For the outstanding question 1561, I will write a letter to the President of SASCOC to impress upon them, their obligation to respond to questions posed by Members of Parliament.

Reply:

The Department has a programme called Touring Ventures, initiated to deliver on the aims and objectives of the Mzansi Golden Economy (MGE) funding strategy. This is a Strategic Market Access Programme. The programme’s mission is to provide opportunities for market access, audience development and the creation of job opportunities for local artists. The programme supports projects that are toured locally or internationally to showcase and promote diverse South African based arts products, that includes artists.

In August 2020, the Minister appointed Master KG and NomceboZikode as Cultural Diplomacy Ambassadors as part of existing initiatives to position the South African Arts and culture products on international platforms. This initiative further makes it easy for the country’s local artists to participate on reputable internationally platforms, also, for other South African artists’ work to be recognized globally. Since the appointment, a number of arts organisations showed interest in getting them participate in international festivals.

Reply:

1. The term of the Board of PanSALB is 5 years.

2. The Board members received working tools in the form of iPads and a Laptop. 11 members received iPads and one (1) member received a laptop.

a) The Public Finance Management Act does not make provision for working tools and therefore the working tools were procured with the Board resolution, which the Board has signed and gave to Supply Chain Management to procure the working tools.

b) The former Chairperson, Dr David Maahlamela, who was Acting CEO at the time, approved the procurement of the working tools.

c) The iPads were an outright purchase at a total cost of R118 704 excluding data that is billed monthly per usage. The total amount paid included iPads for the CEO, CFO and Acting Executive Head: Languages. The price of the laptop was R33 016.

Reply:

Questions 1360, 1436 and 1437 were responded to, the status quo remains the same.

For the outstanding questions 1361 and 1438 I will write a letter to the President of SASCOC to impress upon them, their obligation to respond to questions posed by Members of Parliament.

Reply:

The Department of Sport Arts and Culture recognises the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the livelihoods of the artists and creatives as a whole. It is this recognition that made us to continue working with the sector to come up with various measures and interventions to mitigate the negative impact to artists across the country, inclusive of the KwaZulu-Natal Province.

On 30 October 2020 the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture announced the opening of the call for the sector to apply through the National Arts Council (NAC) and the National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF). The call is aimed at soliciting proposals from the sector that demonstrate opportunities to create work in order to get income flowing and to get the sector moving as part of the reconstruction and recovery of the economy.

The closing dates for submissions to both entities are as follows:

NAC closing date for Stream 1: 20 November 2020

NAC closing date for Stream 2 is 27 November 2020

For NFVF the closing date is 30 November at 17:00

Entities will adjudicate applications as soon they are received them to expedite the turnaround time for disbursement. This will allow the National Arts Council to release the first results few days after the closing date by 30 November 2020.

The entities are expected to start processing the payment immediately after the announcement by the second and third week of December 2020.

We are continuing with the drive to mobilise prospective applicants to apply throughout the country and we are motivated by the numbers of applications thus far.

Reply:

1. PANSALB has indicated that, two investigators were appointed during the past five years, one by the Department and another by Pan South African Language Board. It appears that in appointing Rakoma& Associates, due processes were not followed and investigation is underway.

a) Gobodo Forensic Investigators: Order number OR-015583. Rakoma& Associates: No order number issued.

b) Gobodo Investigators: Department of Arts and Culture Chief Audit Executive. Rakoma& Associates: Ms S ANetshiheni (Acting CEO).

c) Gobodo Forensic Investigators (Appointed by the Department) Rakoma& Associates (Appointed by Pan South African Language Board)

d) Gobodo: R535 267.49 Rakoma: No cost stipulated.

Reply:

1. The NAC has been informed by the office of the Public Protector for the non-payment of beneficiaries. Some beneficiaries had disputed 25% because of poor understanding and/ or lack of communication either the part of the NAC or beneficiaries as to whether their project would be able to continue during lockdown. The funding has subsequently been approved to be disbursed to the affected beneficiaries. Beneficiaries are required to report on the first and/ or second tranches paid; and in addition, submit updated tax clearance certificates before grant funds can be paid out. Therefore the funds are currently being disbursed to beneficiaries who have complied with the disbursement conditions.

2. There were no recommendations issued by the former Public Protector, Adv. T N Madonsela against the Chief Executive Officer of the NAC.

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

1.

a) I was informed by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) that the current estimated cost to complete the Sarah Baartman Centre of Remembrance project amounts to approximately R 200 million.

b) I am informed that at this stage of the project, no cost was paid for work that is not up to standard. The contractor disputed the non-payment of unsatisfactory work that had to be redone. The matter was referred to Mediation for a final recommendation.

c) An assignment of the contract took place between the original contractor and new contractor. The assignment of the contract was a decision between the two contractors, which was merely accepted and honored by the Department at their request. By accepting the assignment, the new contractor took over all contractual obligations and responsibilities from the original contractor. The assignment agreement indicated that all retention monies that was withheld by the Department must be released to the original contractor since the new contractor offered a variable Construction Guarantee of 10% of the project value. The new contractor would recover their losses from the original contractor.

d) The work did not commence immediately after the Lockdown period, due to the reasonthat the contractor cancelled the contract due to a payment that was not received in time as per the timeframe indicated in the Condition of Contract. After several engagements with the contractor, the contractor agreed to rescind the termination and started work on site on the 19 October 2020.

e) The anticipated completion date of the project is scheduled for May 2021.

2. A total number of 121 work opportunities were created on the project during the 2019/2020 financial year.

(3)

(a) A total number of 16 SMME’s were employed.

(b) 5 SMME’s are currently contracted and confirmed returning to site

(c 3 SMME’s are from local businesses in the Kouga Local Municipality

(d) 13 SMME’s are from the Eastern Cape, excluding the 3 above from Kouga Local Municipality. I am informed that there are no SMME’s from outside the Eastern Cape.

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

1. The Expropriation Bill [B23-2020] is to replace the Expropriation Act 63 of1975. The Act of 1975 is inconsistent with the Constitution of South Africa, as also noted by the Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform and Agriculture. The Expropriation Bill [B23-2020] was published in the Government Gazette for submission to Parliament in terms of Rule 276(1) (b) and (c) of the Rules of the National Assembly.

2. No.The Office of the Chief State Law Advisor (OCSLA) granted the final certification on 28 September 2020. The OCSLA found that the Expropriation Bill [B23-2020] is constitutional and therefore should proceed for parliamentary processes.

The review of section 25 of the Constitution, 1996 is the preserve of the Constitutional Review Committee (CRC) of Parliament. In terms of the separation of powers doctrine the three arms of the state must respect the constitutional status, institutions, powers and functions accorded to each one of them.

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

I was informed by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure that the Department did not contract with the Southern SunEmnotweni Hotel as a quarantine site.

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

1. I was informed by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) that the Department has thus far awarded a total of seven (7) lease contracts for the current financial year. Of these, five (5) have been awarded to black owned properties.

2. The Department continues to award leases to landlords who do not meet requirements of Black Economic Empowerment. The details are as provided in Annexure A (attached). It is not in the Empowerment Policy of the Department not to award any tender to landlords who do not meet requirements of the Black Economic Empowerment.

3.The Department will not cancel tender and restart the procurement processes solely on the basis of non-participation of bidders who comply with the requirements of Black Economic Empowerment.

Additionally, the cancellation of tenders are legislated in that departments are only allowed to cancel tenders in instances where due to changed circumstances there is no longer a need, funds are no longer available to cover the expenditure, no acceptable tender is received or there is a material irregularity in the tender process. Departments are only allowed to cancel a tender for the first time and thereafter any further cancellations must be approved by the National Treasury.

 

Reply:

The Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure:

The Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) has programmes at various stages for small, medium and macro enterprises contracted to participate in the Government’s construction and infrastructure projects.

The Vuk’uphileLearnership Programme was launched in 2014 through the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) to promote economic growth and create sustainable development, for lower end Contractors with CIDB Grading 1 to 3. This programme is an Emerging Contractors Development Programme to build capacity to execute the increasing amount of labour-intensive work as part of the EPWP. The learner contractors in the programme receive training as part of the EPWP guidelines inorder to develop the learners on bidding and executing labour intensive projects, so that they are fully fledged contractors when they exit the programme.

Furthermore, the Department is planning to implement the Contractor Incubator Programme (CIP) targeting the development of emerging contractors between CIDB Grading 3 to 6. The purpose of the incubator programme therefore is to create an enabling environment within which selected existing contracting enterprises can develop into sustainable contracting enterprises. The programme is in the approval stages of the procurement strategy by the Department.