Questions & Replies: Presidency
2015-03-17
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Reply received: June 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 1939
The Leader of the Opposition (DA) to ask the Deputy President:
(1) What discussions were held between him and other heads of state during the East African Community (EAC) Regional Summit held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on 13 May 2015;
(2) was the possibility of facilitating mediation by him or South African government officials in the Republic of Burundi discussed during the EAC Summit; if so, what was the nature of these discussions;
(3) what assistance or diplomatic support did he pledge to the EAC Summit in the wake of recent events in the Republic of Burundi;
(4) did he hold any individual meetings with any of the presidents of the (a) Republic of Kenya, (b) United Republic of Tanzania, (c) Republic of Rwanda or (d) Republic of Uganda; if so, what was the nature of these discussions?
NW2163E
REPLY
The East Africa Community (EAC) Regional Summit held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania on 13 May 2015 was an extraordinary summit convened to discuss the situation in Burundi, a member of the EAC. I attended the summit on behalf of President Jacob Zuma who had been invited as a special guest given the role he had previously played in facilitating peace and stability in Burundi.
The Heads of State present, joined by African Union Commission Chairperson Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma and United Nations Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region Ambassador Said Djinnit, discussed how the EAC could assist Burundi to peacefully resolve the current political crisis. This culminated in the Statement from the 13th Extraordinary Summit of the EAC Heads of State.
The summit condemned the attempted coup that occurred as the meeting was being held. It called for the postponement of elections given that conditions inside Burundi were not conducive for the holding of elections. The summit called for the elections to be held not later than the term of the current government. The summit committed itself to interact with various stakeholders within Burundi to restore peace and stability.
On behalf of South Africa I conveyed our continued commitment to support regional efforts to assist Burundi in securing peace and stability in the spirit of the Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement signed on 28 August 2000.
We joined our voice to those of the region when President Zuma attended the Extra Ordinary Summit of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) in Luanda, Angola on 18 May 2015, which called for all parties in Burundi to work towards the restoration of peace and stability.
No individual meetings with the Heads of State present were held during this visit.
Reply received: June 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 1754
1754. Mr. H C C Krüger (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
With reference to his reply to question 1413 on 5 May 2015, will the Socio-Economic Impact Assessment System (SEIAS) be legislated to the effect that all bills and municipal regulations affecting business will be assessed in terms of the guidelines as set out by the SEIAS? NW1972E
Response:
There is currently no intention to legislate SEIAS. However Cabinet has put procedures in place that requires that all policies, bills and regulations of national departments must be assessed using the standard SEIAS guidelines before submission to Cabinet.
It is also important to note that regulations and other sub-ordinate legislation are not required to go through cabinet. These regulations and other subordinate legislation will also be required to go through a SEIAS. We have requested all departments to assimilate SEIA systems in their current drafting programmes to ensure sufficient time and quality is done when conducting SEIA.
Given the constitutional limitations over provinces and municipalities we will encourage and promote the use of SEIAS across provincial and municipal government legislative and regulatory process. For instance, the Economic Development Department and DPME in partnership with the City of Tshwane is conducting a Socio-Economic Impact Assessment (SEIA) on the redrafting the regulations for street trading in the City of Tshwane
Reply received: May 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 1682
Dr M J Cardo (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
- (a) How many Presidential Advisors has the President, Mr J G Zuma had since 24 May 2014, (b) how many Presidential Advisors are there currently, (c) what are their names, (d) for what period of time have their services been engaged, (e) what is the nature and scope of their roles and responsibilities and (f) how much has each specified Presidential Advisor been paid in 2014;
- whether the presidential advisors are remunerated annually; if so, what are the relevant details? NW1902E
REPLY:
The number of Special Advisors since May 2014 has been six and the current number remains at six. They are: S R Maharaj (from January 2009); B Makene (from June 2009); MAT Hulley from November 2011); BN Mfeka (from July 2014); VG Mashinini (from November 2012) and VR Shabalala (from July 2014).
Their responsibilities and levels of remuneration are as follows:
Maharaj – Communication (remuneration = R2, 106,607.00 p.a)
Makene – Legal (remuneration =R1, 701, 167.07 p.a)
Hulley – Legal (Part time) (remuneration = depends on hours worked)
Mfeka – Economic (remuneration = R1, 201, 713.00 p.a)
Mashinini – Special Projects (remuneration = R1, 570,254.00 p.a)
Shabalala – Political (remuneration = 1,219,737.00 p.a)
Reply received: May 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 1681
Dr M J Cardo (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
- (a) On which special projects did a certain person (name and details furnished) advise the President, Mr J G Zuma, in the period 19 November 2012 to 30 June 2014, (b) on which special projects is he currently advising the President and/or (c) what was the last special project on which he advised the President? NW1901E
REPLY:
- The Special Projects Advisor to the President has over the years been given several special projects to work on. His support to the President has been focused on three main areas: infrastructure development, review of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) and outreach to important stakeholders such as religious and traditional leaders.
- The Special Projects Advisor worked mainly in the above-mentioned areas from the beginning of his employment in the Presidency until his last day.
Reply received: May 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 1680
Dr M J Cardo (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
When a certain person (name and details furnished) was employed between May 2010 and April 2012, (a) what hourly rate in rand did he bill in each month, (b) for how many hours of work did he bill in each month and (c) what was the total amount of money paid to him for his services during the specified period? NW1900E
REPLY:
The Special Projects Advisor to His Excellency the President was paid an all -inclusive salary package of R1,570,254.00 per annum. He was not paid any hourly rate.
Reply received: May 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 1449
Mr S C Motau (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
- How many invoices from private contractors to The Presidency currently remain unpaid for longer than 30 days and (b) in each case, what (i) are the details of the (aa) contractor and (bb) services provided and (ii) what is the (aa) date of the invoice and (bb) reason why the invoice was not paid within 30 days? NW1662E
REPLY:
I wish to inform the Honourable Member that there are currently no unpaid invoices older than 30 days in The Presidency.
Reply received: May 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 1413
Mr A R McLoughlin (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
- Does the Office of The Presidency have a Regulatory Burden Reduction strategy in place; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details of the strategy? NW1626E
REPLY:
In 2007, following a feasibility study undertaken by the Presidency and the National Treasury, Cabinet approved that Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIAs) be piloted. The proposed end state was for RIA to be integrated into existing Cabinet processes and to be undertaken for all new and regulations, including subordinate legislation. When the pilot period expired a review was done to draw from the lessons learnt.
Based on the recommendations of the review, in February 2015 Cabinet approved that RIA should be replaced by the Socio-Economic Impact Assessment System (SEIAS).
The aim of SEIAS is to assess the impact of new and existing policies, regulation and legislation of government. This is in line with one of the objectives of the National Development Plan which prioritises a reduction in the burdens placed on inclusive growth through unintended consequences of government actions as well as through inefficient and/ or inappropriate regulations.
In addition Outcomes 4 of the MTSF recognises the need to consider the compliance burden and complexity of policy development, laws and regulations, and the need to improve consistency and remove unnecessary obstacles to growth and investment.
Reply received: May 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 1379
1379. Mr J H Steenhuisen (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
(a) What number of (i) financial, (ii) forensic and/or (iii) other investigations that were commissioned by the Office of The Presidency have been completed since 1 April 2013 and (b) in each case, what are the relevant details on the (i) investigation including a synopsis of the facts and findings of each case, (ii) persons or third parties responsible for each investigation, (iii) total cost to date of each investigation and (iv) appropriate steps taken against officials and third parties implicated of wrongdoing in the findings of the investigations? NW1591E
RELY:
I wish to inform the Honourable Member that the required information is contained in The Presidency Annual Report for 2013/2014. The information therein contains details on irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure under investigation in the period in question, and disciplinary steps and/or criminal proceedings that were initiated.
I wish to also refer the Honourable Member to SCOPA Resolutions (2013/14) that are contained in the Report to the effect that “The Presidency has systems in place to detect and report irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure as prescribed in the National Treasury Guideline on irregular expenditure. The Presidency further enhanced systems to improve controls or prevent irregular expenditure”.
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 981
981. Mr S C Motau (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
(1) What relationship does The Presidency have with the SA Monitoring and Evaluation Association (SAMEA);
(2) are any of The Presidency’s officials members of the SAMEA; if not, why not; if so, how many officials are members of the SAMEA;
(3) are there any government departments that have significant working relationships with the SAMEA; if so, (a) which departments are those and (b) are there any examples to show what benefits are derived from these relationships? NW1140E
REPLY:
The DPME in The Presidency is an institutional member of SAMEA and as such all staff are automatically members. DPME has a Standing Committee with SAMEA where a number of projects have been taken forward. DPME is also a member of a Steering Committee for the International Year of Evaluation with SAMEA and the Public Service Commission. The events for the International Year are being taken forward in collaboration with SAMEA. In addition there are common projects, for example an assignment on Professionalisation of Evaluators which is currently underway.
As an institutional member of SAMEA, DPME automatically qualify for 5 membership positions for staff. However staff members may apply for individual membership.
Historically the Public Service Commission has been a major supporter of SAMEA and continues to be an active supporter. The current chair of the SAMEA board is the DG of the Public Service Commission. 46% of SAMEA members are from a wide range of government departments.
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 980
980. Mr S C Motau (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Has The Presidency taken any steps to inform the public about the importance of monitoring and evaluation as an effective intervention to assist the Government to address the accountability criteria for specific policies or programmes; if not, (a) why not and (b) does The Presidency plan to take such action; if so; (i) when was this done and (ii) what were the results? NW1139E
REPLY:
The Presidency undertakes regular Siyahlola visits as well as Izibizos as part of its monitoring programs where communities are informed about the importance of monitoring and evaluating the provision of services and accountability of public officials. The Presidency also hosts regular media briefings about its work in order to inform the public. In addition, the DPME website has substantial monitoring and evaluation information available to the public including the Programme of Action (POA) reports, evaluation reports, reports on the 20 Year Review, Development Indicators, Management Performance Assessment reports. Once they have been tabled at Cabinet, the evaluation reports are made available on the website. Over 100 evaluations have been quality assessed and put on the website.
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 979
979. Mr S C Motau (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Given that the United Nations declared 2015 the International Year of Evaluation and a resolution urging member countries to strengthen their evaluation capacity was signed by 41 countries, (a) why South Africa did not sign the resolution despite the fact the other four BRICS countries endorsed the agreement, (b) what steps is The Presidency taking to strengthen monitoring and evaluation capacity internally and (c) has The Presidency evaluated itself regarding its own (i) capacity and (ii) requisite expertise; if so, (aa) what was the outcome of its evaluation and (bb) what remedial action has been taken to address any shortcomings? NW1138E
REPLY:
In collaboration with the South African Monitoring and Evaluation Association (SAMEA), the Minister in the Presidency responsible for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation launched the International Year of Evaluation at the University of Witwatersrand on 19 March 2015. There is a planned calendar of events culminating in a Conference in October 2015. DPME requested DIRCO to sign the resolution.
Steps to strengthen M&E capacity in government include the following:
The development and publication of policy guidelines, frameworks, and tools aligned to each of the DPME programmes. These guidelines are all available on the DPME website and are updated on a regular basis, covering the following areas:
- A new discussion document on Performance Monitoring and Evaluation Principles and Approach, which has a section on how monitoring and evaluation capacity development should be implemented
- An Integrated monitoring and evaluation capacity development strategy and guidelines on the functions and structural arrangements of monitoring and evaluation functions in the National and Provincial Government departments as well as Offices of the Premier.
- A policy framework and guidelines on how to implement various aspects of the National Evaluation System
- A guideline and toolkit on how to conduct Management Performance Assessments on national and provincial government departments as well as more than 30 case studies that are used to facilitate peer-learning
- A policy framework and toolkit on how to conduct Citizen-Based Monitoring and Evaluation
- A toolkit on how to conduct frontline service delivery monitoring
- DPME meets regularly with heads of monitoring and evaluation units from all national government departments and Offices of the Premier in respective forums to share knowledge and address all issues pertaining to monitoring and evaluation. Planning has now been added to these forums.
- DPME works closely with the National School of Government in regularly updated the monitoring and evaluation curriculum that is used to train all public sector institutions on demand. Further training is conducted directly by various DPME units such as on how to conduct evaluations and how to implement the departmental planning and its related quarterly performance reporting system
- On the job support, advice and technical support on monitoring and evaluation is provided to all public sector institutions on demand, including to Parliament. This support is sometime provided in partnership with other organs of the state and universities.
- There is close interaction with training providers like universities, the South African Monitoring and Evaluation Association and donors to continuously improve our capacity development measures.
The evaluation system is not designed for evaluating organisational capacity but policies, programmes, systems. Evaluations have been conducted of some programmes run by the Presidency/DPME in the following areas:
- Coordination by clusters – this suggested ways of improving the operation of the cluster system, part of which is the Presidency’s responsibility. The report was approved by Cabinet and is on the DPME website. The improvement plan has been developed and tabled at the Forum of South African Directors General (FOSAD) MANCO meeting. Proposals for changes to the clusters have been made in this Plan. Plans are underway for the implementation of the Improvement Plan
- Evaluation of The Management Performance Assessment Tool – this evaluation is underway and the final report is expected next week. The report is likely to go to Cabinet in May and then be made public.
- Evaluation of the Outcomes Approach – this evaluation is underway.
- Evaluation of the Citizen-Based Monitoring System – the call has gone out for the commissioning of the evaluation which will be completed by September 2015.
- Evaluation of Evaluation System – the terms of reference for this evaluation are being developed and the evaluation should complete by March 2016.
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 856
DATE OF PUBLICATION: 20 MARCH 2015
856. Ms P T van Damme (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
- Whether The Presidency or the entities reporting to him provides any type of sponsorships; if not, what is The Presidency’s position in this regard; if so, (a) what are the details of each sponsorship, (b) what is the value of each sponsorship, (c) when were each of these sponsorship deals undertaken and (d) when will each of the sponsorship deals end;
- whether The Presidency or any of the entities reporting to him intends to enter into any type of sponsorship deal or contract in the (a) 2015-16 and (b) 2016-17 financial years; if not, why not; if so, (i) with whom will each sponsorship deal or contract be made, (ii) what will the terms of each of the sponsorship deals or contracts be, (iii) when will each of the sponsorship deals or contracts (aa) commence and (bb) end and (iv) what is the value of each of the sponsorship deals or contracts? NW1005E
(1)
(a) None
(b) None
(c) None
(d) None
(2)
(a) No sponsorship plans for 2015/16
(b) No sponsorship plans for 2016/17
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 821
821. Ms D Carter (Cope) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Whether the production of cross-cutting sectoral reports on an annual basis by The Presidency, in support of the implementation of the National Development Plan (NDP), had influenced any department to utilise such information to alter, amend or improve their own yearly plans within the NDP framework and thus help achieve the objectives of the NDP; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
REPLY:
Each chapter of the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) contains specific outputs, targets and indicators. The MTSF chapters are aligned with the 14 chapters of the NDP. Departments are required to submit their strategic and annual performance plans to DPME for assessment to determine the plans alignment with the MTSF and therefore the NDP. DPME provides feedback to departments on the extent of the alignment of the departmental plans with the planning frameworks as well as with the MTSF.
We have observed that departments do amend their plans based on the inputs from DPME to align them with the planning frameworks and the MTSF.
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 699
699 Mrs A M Dreyer (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
- (a) What is the Government’s policy on state funerals? (b) how many state funerals were held in the (i) 2009-10 (ii) 2010-11(iii) 2011-12 (iv) 2012-13 v) 2013-14 (a)
- what are the names of each of the deceased persons who had state funerals held in their honour?
Reply:
The Government Policy on State Funerals is that State Funerals are accorded to Chief Office Bearers of the Republic of South Africa i.e. President, Deputy President, Former President, Former Deputy President, Acting President and Acting Deputy President.
Former President Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela has so far been the only person who had state funeral held in his honour. The Presidency spent R20 404 585.90 in the financial year of 2013/2014.
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 683
683. Mr S C Motau (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
(1) In light of (a) Mr Mxolisi Nxasana’s suspension from the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), (b) Adv. Vasantrai Soni’s resignation from the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) and (c) General Anwar Dramat’s suspension from the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks), (i) who are the individuals who currently make up the composition of the Anti-Corruption Task Team (ACTT) and (ii) what investigations has the team undertaken since 1 January 2015;
Reply:
I wish to inform the Honourable Member that Mr Nxasana (the NDPP) has not been suspended. The NDPP or his delegates, namely Mr Hofmeyr and Ms Mokhatla from the NPA make up the composition of the ACTT and attend the Principal’s meetings. The following officials serve on the ACTT:
SAPS: Acting Head Lt Genl B Ntlemeza
NPS/AFU: Mr. M Nxasana
Mr. W Hofmeyr Mokhatla
SIU: Mr. G Visagie
SARS: Mr. R Lalla
FIC: Mr. M Michell
NT: Ms. Z Mxunyelwa
Mr. K Brown (CPO)
DPSA: Mr. K Govender
Presidency: Mr. J Rathebe
SSA: Amb Kudjoe
NICOC: Mr. H Schlenther
DPCI: Maj Genl Ntlemeza attends as acting head of the DPCI
SIU: Adv Visagie attends as acting head of the SIU.
Since January tis year, 24 allegations were received by the ACTT and are currently in the analysis and preliminary investigation phase. NW830E
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 682
682. Mr S C Motau (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Whether, with reference to his reply to question 91 on 3 March 2015, (a) how many of the total of 56 persons were pursued and convicted, following investigations by the Anti-Corruption Task Team in (i) 2013, (ii) 2014 and (iii) since 1 January 2015 and (b) what amount was recovered from the convicted, corrupt officials in (i) 2013, (ii) 2014 and (iii) since 1 January 2015? NW829E
Reply:
During the following financial years the ACTT had successful convictions as follows:
Prior to 2012= 12
2012/2013 = 25
2013/2014 = 14
2014/2015 = 5
56
Although 13 officials have been convicted, there have been no criminal recoveries. However, in matters wherein government officials were involved, an amount of R 10 590 245 was recovered in the form of civil recoveries.
Forfeitures were as follows:
Prior to 2013 = R 5 577 365
2013/2014 = R 5 000 000
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 681
681. Mr S C Motau (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Whether, with reference to his reply to question 91 on 3 March 2015, (a) how many of the total of 3570 officials were pursued following information from the National Anti-Corruption Hotline and found guilty of misconduct related to corrupt activities in each calendar year between September 2004 and March 2015 and (b) what amount was recovered from the above-mentioned convicted officials for each year between 2004 and 2015? NW828E
REPLY:
The Anti-Corruption Task Team (ACTT) has not investigated any cases received from the Hotline. The Secretariat dealt with one Section 34 of Precca referral from the Hotline, but it was found not to be in the ACTT Mandate. The ACTT will in future coordinate the prosecution of officials and recoveries from them, but it is still in a process to set up a system to ensure that all the data that is gathered is reliable and is kept safely.
Reply received: April 2015
PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION NO : 643
DATE OF QUESTION : 06 MARCH 2015
DATE FOR WRITTEN REPLY : 15 APRIL 2015
643. The Leader of the Opposition (DA) to ask the President of the Republic:
With reference to his reply on 19 February 2015 to the debate on his State of the Nation Address, where he stated that the black majority still owns only 3% of the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, (a) on what figures and (b) according to what methodology was this percentage calculated? NW724E
The matter of black ownership in the JSE was raised following my pronouncement during the debate of the State of the Nation Address. As a result of the misinterpretation of my utterances a media statement was issued by the Presidency on the 1st of March 2015. In that statement I gave clarity on the issue of the racial profile of the ownership in the Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
The debate is primarily based on the differences between ‘direct ownership’ and ‘indirect ownership’. I have used the statistics that outline the level of direct ownership of the JSE by black or African people.
Direct black ownership in the JSE stood at 3% as at 30 June 2014. If I were to use indirect ownership I would include mandated investment such as institutional pension fund managers and private equity funds and savings funds. This method of determining ownership in the JSE does not give a true reflection of the level of black ownership and therefore exaggerates the extent in which economic transformation has taken place in this country.
Through the Code of Good Practice on Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE), government is attempting to deal with this misrepresentation of black ownership of entities. This is part of government’s efforts to transform the racial inequalities in society, including our economy.
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 568
568. Mr G R Davis (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Has the Office of The Presidency received notices of resignation from two SA Broadcasting Corporation Board members (notices furnished); if so, (a) when was the Office of The Presidency made aware of each resignation and (b) why has the Office of the Presidency not notified the National Assembly of each resignation? NW648E
REPLY:
The Presidency did receive the resignation letters by the two SABC board members. The two SABC board members forwarded their resignation letters to the Minister of Communications. The Presidency became aware of the resignation by the two SABC board members through the Minister of Communications. The resignation by Prof. Bongani Khumalo was brought to the attention of The Presidency on 26 January 2015., while the resignation by Mr Tembinkosi Bonakele was brought to the attention of The Presidency on 26 March 2015.
The Broadcasting Act, 1999 does not require the President to inform Parliament about the resignation by the SABC board members.
However, on 27 March 2015 the President requested the National Assembly to initiate a process to fill the vacancies that have occurred on the SABC Board as a result of the resignation of Advocate Tembinkosi Bonakale and Professor Bongani Khumalo.
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 530
DATE OF PUBLICATION IN INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER: 6 March 2015
INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NUMBER: 5 - 2015
530. Mr S & Motau (DA) to ask the Minister of Women in The Presidency:
Whether any employees in her office have been on suspension with full salary since 1 January 2014; if so, (a) how many employees and (b) what IS the total cost thereof? NW610E
Reply
Minister in the Presidency responsible for Women only took office in the current administration.
(a) Not applicable
(b) Not applicable
Reply received: April 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 529
529. Mr S C Motau (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Whether any employees in his office have been on suspension with full salary since 1 January 2014; if so, (a) how many employees and (b) what is the total cost thereof? NW609E
REPLY:
I wish to inform the Honourable Member that no employees in my office have been on suspension in the period under question.
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NUMBER:499
499. Dr M J Cardo (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
With regard to the National Planning Commission (NPC) commissioners whose term of office expires in May 2015, (a) when will nominations open for the new cohort of commissioners and (b) what (i)(aa) shortlisting and (bb) appointments process will be followed, (ii) length of period will the new commissioners be appointed for and (iii) will be the NPC’s mandate in the new term? NW578E
REPLY:
The nominations for the new cohort of commissioners opened on the 10 March 2015 until 10 April 2015. The Honourable Member would have seen the call for nominations in the newspapers and the website of the Presidency and the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation earlier this week.
The shortlisting and appointment process will be same as the one followed for the appointment of the current cohort of commissioners. The President will appoint commissioners from a shortlist that will be developed by a panel that will be convened by the Minister in the Presidency.
The President will announce all necessary details relating to the length of period that commissioners will be appointed for and their mandate.
Reply received: April 2015
PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION NO : 484
DATE OF QUESTION : 06 MARCH 2015
DATE FOR WRITTEN REPLY : 15 APRIL 2015
Mr M G P Lekota (Cope) to ask the President of the Republic:
- Whether the Government is laying the foundation for South Africans in every walk of life to (a) learn about the main players and the main inspiration in our constitution-making processes and (b) help everyone understand and appreciate, through (i) road shows, (ii) seminars and (iii) media production, its lasting legacy for all of us so as to thoroughly prepare the nation and young people in particular to mark the 20th anniversary of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, on 19 December 2016 with a full and proper understanding of its significance in our national life; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details;
- Whether he will make a statement on involving all political parties represented in Parliament in the planning of the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the Constitution? NW563E
REPLY:
(1)(a) and (b)(i))ii)(iii), Yes. Following the 1994 elections, there were concerted efforts to increase the population’s knowledge of the Constitution and build a human rights culture in post-apartheid South Africa. The Constitutional Assembly at this stage implemented one of the most effective campaigns in educating people on the Constitution. This initiative was spearheaded by the state and implemented through extensive collaboration with all organs of state and civil society organisations. This contributed towards increasing popular understanding of the Constitution and Bill of Rights in a democracy however much more needs to be done to actively inform people about the Constitution, its history and the Bill of Rights.
Making the Constitution accessible and raising constitutional awareness means shaping programmes in such a way that they have the most impact. The National Development Plan 2030 builds on the progress made since 1994 and lays the foundation for the development of such programmes by government departments to, amongst others, increase broad-based knowledge about the Constitution as well as the values enshrined therein. This particular activity is reflected under Outcome 14: Nation building and Social Cohesion.
Road shows, seminars and media production remain important mechanisms to ensure that Government does indeed reach the length and breadth of South Africa on constitutional awareness programmes. The reality is that many people live in rural areas and not all South Africans are literate, thus making it essential for tailor-made programmes in a way that reaches people from all walks of life.
The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development continues to print and distribute copies of the Constitution, which are widely available. The Department has also translated the Constitution into all official languages, as well as Braille. The Department has also just recently completed a new pocket booklet, called The Basic Provisions of the Constitution – Made Easy for Learners. It contains the Preamble and Founding Provisions of the Constitution as well as the Bill of Rights. In partnership with the Department of Basic Education the pocket booklet will be distributed to learners from Grades 8-12.
The Department’s Access to Justice and Promotion of Constitutional Rights programme, implemented by its partner institution the Foundation for Human Rights, set out to contribute to strengthening of democracy by improving access to justice and promoting constitutional rights. Under these goals, particular attention was given to vulnerable and marginalized groups in townships and rural areas, and to the building of partnerships with civil society organisations.
Under this programme nine million people were reached through popular education programmes, 360 000 farm workers and dwellers assisted with access to justice matters and 5400 members of civil society organisations benefitted from capacity building programmes, using the medium of road shows, seminars, media production and various other tools and mechanisms.
On 10 December 2014, International Human Rights Day, the Department launched the Socio-Economic Justice for All Programme (SEJA). SEJA will continue to focus on improved awareness of constitutional rights with more emphasis on socio-economic rights and on vulnerable and marginalised groups.
Some of the indicators under the SEJA deal with the continuation and strengthening of a popular education programme, multi-media programmes to create awareness on the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, development of accessible print and electronic media to popularise the Constitutional, specific programmes to support educational initiatives and dialogues with young people, women, farmworkers and other vulnerable groups, policy dialogues on key human rights issues in society and support to civil society organisations by way of grants.
The Department of Arts and Culture and the Department of Basic Education are also working together to promote the Constitution in schools as well as the national flag.
(2) Yes indeed a statement will be made at an appropriate time to commemorate the twentieth anniversary of South Africa’s watershed and ground breaking Constitution. It will be a proud moment for every South African. The Honourable Member will recall that this House commemorated the 10th Anniversary of the Constitution by convening a joint sitting of Parliament.
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NO : 475
Date Published : 06 March 2015
Mr J.S. Malema (EFF) to ask the President of the Republic:
In the light of the fact that he has visited Angola a number of times since he assumed office in 2009,
(a) What was the purpose of these visits and
(b) What do ordinary South Africans stand to benefit from these visits?
REPLY:
(a) The Honourable Member is correct. I have visited the Republic of Angola several times since 2009. The main purpose of the visits was to discuss not only bilateral cooperation between South Africa and Angola but also and most importantly it was to discuss issues of peace, stability and security in the Region as well as in the Continent.
For instance, I paid a State Visit to Angola from 19 to 21 August 2009. A year later, President Dos Santos paid his first ever State Visit to South Africa from 13 to 16 December 2010. During these visits, several sectoral bilateral agreements and memoranda of understanding in the fields of trade, industry, energy, transport, culture, among others, were signed.
A number of our visits to the Republic of Angola were also to attend regional meetings convened to discuss peace, stability and security issues in the Great Lakes Region.
(b) The people of South Africa benefit immensely from such visits. The signing of the legal instruments mentioned above, have ensured that there has been a noticeable increase in economic cooperation between South Africa and Angola to the extent that Angola has now become South Africa’s top trading partner in the Continent. We have also observed an improved security situation in the Great Lakes Region.
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 405
405. Dr M J Cardo (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Have any individuals been seconded by the National Youth Development Agency to work in the Presidency since May 2014; if so, (a) what are their (i) names, (ii) duties and (iii) salaries and (b) from whose budget are their salaries paid?
[NW481E]
REPLY:
The NYDA seconded the below-mentioned individual to work in the Presidency in January 2015.
Clayton Peters
The duties relate to managing; co-ordinating and advising on special projects and other related duties as required by the Deputy Minister in the Presidency.
The salary is R 1,076,339 as a cost to company per annum.
The salary is paid from the NYDA budget as the seconding organization.
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 404
404. Dr M J Cardo (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Have the National Youth Development Agency commissioned a probe into the qualifications of any of its (a) office bearers and (b) staff members since its establishment in 2009; if so, (i) what individuals were probed, (ii) what were the relevant (aa) findings and (bb) recommendations for disciplinary action in each case and (iii) what disciplinary action was taken in each case?
[NW480E]
REPLY:
The NYDA instituted a probe in 2014 into the qualifications of its employees. The report recommended disciplinary hearings be conducted against the employees listed below. The information provided are the results of the disciplinary hearings conducted against the affected employees. The NYDA was represented by Bowman Gilfillan Attorneys. The NYDA appointed the respected law firm DLA Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr as the independent Presiding Officer for the hearings. The findings and recommendations as listed below are those directly made by DLA Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr as the Presiding Officer. The NYDA took the necessary disciplinary action against the affected employees as recommended by the Presiding Officer consistent with NYDA policies.
- Name: Manager: IT Infrastructure
Findings: “Having regard to the above, I found, on a balance of probabilities that the additional documents submitted by the Employee fully corroborated his version and that the Senior Certificate queried by the Employer is that of the Employee's.”
Recommendation: The Employee was found not guilty of the charges brought against him.
2. Name: General Manager: Strategic Programmes
Finding: “It was common cause that the Employee met the requirements for the diploma and had he not continued with his studies he would have been conferred with a certificate. Therefore, it can be said that the Employee qualified at diploma level. A Lexis Nexis verification report confirmed that he had obtained the diploma. The information from the university was unclear and contradictory. The rules of the university are also unclear. The correspondence from the university dated 18 August 2014 confirmed that the Employee forfeited his diploma. However, the Employee did not forfeit his credits.
It is common cause that that the Employee did not graduate from the University with the diploma. Although he met the requirements for the diploma he was aware that the diploma was not actually conferred on him. In the premises, I find that the Employee made a misrepresentation. The Employer indicated that it would not persist with the allegation that the Employee had been dishonest. I observed in the hearing that the Employee honestly believed that he held a diploma until the correspondence of 18 August 2014 was received. Therefore the misrepresentation made by the Employee was innocent. The evidence that was led indicated that the Employee was head hunted for his skills and experience. Therefore his qualifications did not induce the Employer to enter into the employment relationship. Having regard to the above, I find the Employee guilty for making a misrepresentation.”
Sanction: The employee was issued with a final written warning. Further, that the Employee completes or has the diploma conferred on him within 12 (twelve) months by no later than 31 December 2015. Failing which the Employee to be demoted to a position one grade lower than the one he currently occupies. It is incumbent upon the Employee to keep the Employer informed of any challenges he may face with regard to the aforesaid.
3. Name: Personal Assistant
Finding: “I find the Employee guilty of the charge against her.”
Sanction: The Employee was issued with a final written warning valid for 12 (twelve) months and further that she completes her qualification.
4. Name: Manager: Market Linkages
Finding: The Employer's representative stated that the letter from the university verifies that the Employee does indeed have a post graduate diploma as reflected on his Curriculum Vitae. The Employer proceeded to withdraw the charge against the Employee. Accordingly there is no finding to be made.
5. Name: Administrator: Supply Chain Management
Finding: “Having regard to the above, I find the Employee not guilty of the
charge against her”
6. Name: Administrator: Enterprise Finance
Findings: “I find the Employee not guilty of the charge against her.”
7. Name: Administrator: NYS
Findings: “I find the Employee not guilty of the charge against her.”
8. Name: Administrator: Corporate Services
Finding: “I find the Employee guilty of the charge against her. I also find that the Employer has been well aware that the Employee does not have a matric certificate since 2009, for a period of five years. Action should have been taken by the Employer soon thereafter. I find this a strong mitigating factor in favour of the Employee.”
Recommendation: The employee was issued with a final written warning valid for 12 (twelve) months. Further that she completes her matric or a matric equivalency course within 12 (twelve) months by no later than 31 December 2015. Failing which the Employee will be demoted to a position one grade lower to the one she currently occupies. It is incumbent upon the Employee to keep the Employer informed of any challenges she may face with regard to the aforesaid.
9. Name: Officer: Outreach
Findings: “The Employee confirmed that he was pleading guilty and that he understood the consequences of pleading guilty. Based on this and the prior information available to me I found that the Employee had correctly pleaded guilty”
Recommendation: It was clear at the commencement of the Hearing that the Employee honestly believed that he had completed his diploma and that information to the contrary came as a shock to him. Accordingly, I find that there was no dishonesty in the misrepresentation that the Employee made. The Employee pleaded guilty and he displayed sincere remorse. Further, there was no evidence that the trust relationship between the parties was broken. The Employee also undertook to complete his diploma. I find that this is a case where corrective discipline can be applied effectively. Having regard to the submissions made by both parties I recommend that the Employee be issued with a final written warning valid for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of issue. Further that the Employee completes his qualification by no later than 31 December 2015 failing which he will be demoted to a position 1 (one) grade lower to the one he currently occupies. It is incumbent upon the Employee to inform the Employer of any challenges he may face with regard to the aforesaid.
10. Name: Personal Assistant
Findings: “I find the Employee not guilty of the charge against her.”
11. Name: Administrator: Asset Management
Findings: “The Employee's CV and Employee Details Form state that the Employee has a National Higher Certificate in Accountancy. The Employee persisted throughout the hearing with the explanation that she has the said qualification. The Employee's Representative stated that the Employee no longer had the certificate. However, on 07 August 2014, the Employee stated that she did not receive a certificate because she still owed the institution fees. Ms Thewana confirmed that the Employee did not owe any fees. Ms Thewana also confirmed that the Employee did not obtain the said qualification because she still had one outstanding module. Accordingly, the Employee was never conferred with the said qualification. Having regard to the aforesaid, I find the Employee guilty, on a balance of probabilities.”
Recommendation: I recommend that the Employee be suspended on agreement for two weeks without pay. Further that she completes her qualification by no later than 31 December 2015. Failing which she will be demoted to a position one grade lower to the one she currently occupies. It is incumbent upon the Employee to inform the Employer of any challenges she may face with regard to the aforesaid. If the Employee does not agree to the suspension without pay and the condition that she completes her qualification I recommend that she is dismissed with (1) one months' notice.
12. Name: Specialist: Researcher
Findings: On 05 August 2014 the Employee's Representative requested the Chairperson and the Company Representative to recuse themselves on the basis that neither of them are employees of the Employer. Accordingly we were not permitted to take part in the disciplinary hearing. The Company Representative argued that it was fair under the circumstances for the Employer to make use of an external Chairperson and representative given that this matter was one of many similar matters. A number of other employees in various positions within the Employer had been implicated in the same/similar misconduct as the Employee. I ruled that the Employer's disciplinary code was a guide and that under the circumstances it was expedient to deviate from it. On 11 August 2014 I ruled that the matter should be properly investigated before the hearing could continue as there were matters that were raised that should have been resolved at the investigation stage and not the disciplinary hearing stage. It was common cause that the Employee has a bachelors and doctorate degrees. The Employee's matric certified statement of results reflected a different name to the name on his other certificates. Further there was a query regarding the Employee's date of birth. The circumstances surrounding these anomalies were explained by the Employee's Representative who also referred to newspaper clippings to corroborate his version which I found on a balance of probabilities, did corroborate his version. Under the circumstances I found it expedient that this matter be further investigated before it could continue.
13. The following employees were recorded as having incomplete files, however at the commencement of the disciplinary proceedings, they have submitted the outstanding documents, therefore, no action was taken against them:
(a) Officer: BCS
(b) Specialist: Microfinance
(c) Coordinator: NYS and Skills Development
(d) Manager: International Relations
(e) Programme Assistant: NYS
(f) Manager: Human Resources
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NO : 373
Date Published : 20 February 2015
Mr J. S. Malema (EFF) to ask the President of the Republic:
In light of the fact that the country is on a verge of an economic collapse as a result of the electricity crisis, what exactly does he mean when he says the electricity crisis is caused by apartheid, even after Eskom pointed to scientific and technical challenges caused by the current government, including doubling the costs for the construction of the new power stations? NW212E
REPLY:
The end of apartheid and the election of a new democratic Government in 1994 provided the impetus for all policy and institutional shifts underpinning the electrification programme. These shifts were necessary to address the historical racially-based disparity in the provision of key infrastructure.
In 1994, only 34% of South Africans had access to electricity, the majority of which were white people and only 12% of that was rural electrification.
With the dawn of democracy came the added responsibility to connect every household which was denied access to the national grid under the Apartheid regime. This required that additional transmission and distribution infrastructure be made available to cater to the increased demand of connecting millions of households to the grid. This demand continued to increase without the requisite supply options being secured as the new democratic Government had to balance the cost of delivering many key priorities for a democratic South Africa including the provision of adequate health, education infrastructure and basic services to cater for the many millions of South Africans previously not catered for.
Since 1994, over 89% of households now have access to electricity, and universal access remains a key priority. The historic disparity in delivering key infrastructure projects to the majority of South Africans has a significant bearing on the energy challenges experienced today. During apartheid, Eskom’s focus was in meeting the demand of only 5 million citizens. Post-apartheid, this number has grown considerably to over 12, 2 million citizens reducing the reserve margin levels that had been created. Eskom’s technical challenges, in particular, failure to maintain its plants further constrained the power system.
I have not denied that there are challenges in the electricity industry and within Eskom. The Cabinet's Eskom financial support package of September 2014 attests to that. During the State of the Nation Address I further reiterated that resolving energy was the number one priority to enable economic growth. What I focussed on is that, under the democratic dispensation, Eskom has had to meet demand which had deliberately not been met under Apartheid. Naturally, this led to an extraordinary increase in demand which the successive Democratic Administrations have done everything possible to meet.
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 255
255. Mr W M Madisha (Cope) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Whether the Government is meeting the fundamental requirements of Chapter 13 of the National Development Plan: Vision for 2030, by (a) achieving extensive collaboration between all sections of society, (b) providing strong leadership by government, (c) bringing about a capable developmental state through putting in place (i) a competent public service, (ii) accountability and (iii) effective measures to counter corruption and (d) providing realistic strategies for overcoming limitations in state capacity; if not, why not; if so, to what extent has each of these requirements been met? NW278E
REPLY:
Achieving extensive collaboration between all sections of society:
Different departments have projects in which they collaborate with different sectors, including the National Education Collaboration Trust, Social Compact for Human Settlements, and partnership between the Department of Home Affairs and some banks to issue new Smart ID Card at some branches. The Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation is implementing the Citizen Based Monitoring on the quality of services in priority service departments such as SAPS, and Department of Social Development among others to mobilise citizens in monitoring the quality of services they receive.
Providing strong leadership by government:
Government is providing leadership to society. The President has on-going engagements with different sectors of society through different structures including the Presidential Business Working Group and the Presidential Working Group with the Faith Community. The Deputy President is engaging different social partners under the auspices of Nedlac to address challenges labour relations arena. Through these and other initiatives, Government is providing leadership in tackling some of the pressing challenges.
Bringing about a capable developmental state through putting in place:
i) a competent public service,
Outcome 12 is a key intervention that involves the Presidency, Department of Public Service and Administration, National Treasury, and Department of Public Works in implementing actions in the MTSF. Furthermore, strategic and annual performance plans of departments have been aligned to ensure that commitments in the NDP and MTSF are included in plans and budget of departments. Some of the indicators in outcome 12 include: reducing of vacancy rate; ensuring payment of suppliers within 30 days; improving management quality of management practices and audit outcomes.
ii) accountability
At administrative level the Public Service Act and regulations provide necessary mechanisms for accountability in the public service. Through Outcome 12 we are also monitoring the time taken to resolve disciplinary cases.
Work is also underway to establish the Administrative Head of the Public Service that will ensure accountability of heads of departments to the administrative head. This will also clarify the political administrative interface between Executive Authorities and Heads of Department.
At political level through the outcome system Cabinet on a quarterly basis monitors progress with the implementation of commitments as outlined in the MTSF which is implementation tool of the NDP.
(iii) effective measures to counter corruption
Government has initiated a number of initiatives to fight corruption. The Anti-Corruption Inter-Ministerial Committee (ACIMC) was established in June 2014. The ACIMC is mandated to coordinate and oversee the work of state organs aimed at combatting corruption in the public and private sectors. The ACIMC, which I convene and chair, comprises of the Ministers of Justice and Correctional Services, State Security, Police, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Public Service and Administration, Finance, Home Affairs and Social Development. The ACIMC is supported by existing government mechanisms and structures to ensure the execution and implementation of government’s anti-corruption agenda.
Over and above this, the Minister of Finance has announced measures to review public sector supply chain management processes, introduction of a central supplier database that will interface with SARS, the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission and the payroll system. This will eliminate the scourge of tender fraud and streamline the procurement system. The President has signed into law the Public Administration and Management Action which seeks to among others prevent public servants from doing business with the state.
- providing realistic strategies for overcoming limitations in state capacity
Government is implementing a number of initiatives, including:
- A Graduate recruitment scheme to ensure we attract qualified and motivated staff to the public service.
- The development of a mentoring and peer support mechanisms for senior managers.
- Through the National School of Governance (NSG), capacity through learning and development interventions will be implemented.
- DPSA are also rolling out an initiative to support departments to strengthen their HR capacity. The Chief Procurement Officer will also support departments to improve supply chain management capacity.
- Operations Phakisa has also been introduced to focus on implmenting NDP and MTSF priorities. This initiative ensures collaboration between govenment and non-government agents. Detiled planning and project managment is central to this initiative.
QUESTION NUMBER: 224
224. Ms P Ntobongwana (EFF) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
Whether she has any mechanisms to strengthen the existing monitoring and evaluation systems across the service delivery value chain, including such systems from (a) schools, (b) provinces, (c) national departments and (d) all other key service delivery government institutions; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details? NW245E
Reply:
The 5th Administration adopted the NDP as its developmental blue print and developed the MTSF 2014-2020 with 14 outcomes covering the 14 chapters of the NDP. The implementation of these 14 outcomes is regularly monitored by Cabinet through the cluster system.
In addition, whereas the Outcomes Approach focuses on achievement of cross-cutting outcomes and not performance of individual departments, a number of programmes were developed, piloted and rolled-out from 2010 to date. These include
- comprehensive expenditure reviews conducted by DPME and the National Treasury
- Frontline service delivery monitoring which monitors the experiences of citizens when receiving government service in hospitals, schools, licencing departments, Home Affairs
- MPAT which focuses on the monitoring management practices in all national and provincial government departments
- Presidential Hotline which afford an opportunity to citizens to voice their complaints about the quality of service they receive from government institutions
- Evaluation of priority government programmes to determine their impact on society
In addition, the Department is currently piloting the following programmes
- a tool similar to MPAT in municipalities called Local Government Management Institutional Model (LGMIM);
- community based monitoring programmed aimed at partnering with civil society to monitor selected frontline service delivery against agreed standards;
- Operation Phakisa which is a very detailed planning process involving identifying problems areas, opportunities for improvement, setting and public announcement of targets and plans; intensive monitoring and public reporting on progress through a process called “labs “
All the above initiatives are mechanisms aimed at strengthening monitoring and evaluation systems across the service delivery value chain of government. More intiatives will be identified, piloted and rolled based on the prevailing circumstances informed by research and evalution of the performance of government programmes.
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 223
DATE OF PUBLICATION IN INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER: 12 February 2015
INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NUMBER: 1 - 2015
223. Ms P Ntobongwana (EFF) to ask the Minister of Women in The Presidency:
Why does her office not have accurate and comprehensive data on gender-based violence that reveals the extent and magnitude of the problem while it could assist to reduce such violence against women in society? NW244E
Reply
The Department of Women is still in the process of establishing its own systems and processes that will enable it to gather, capture, store and use such data as one of the tools to curb violence against women in our society.
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 165
DATE OF PUBLICATION IN INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER: 12 February 2015
INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NUMBER: 1 - 2015
165. Mr S Mokgalapa (DA) to ask the Minister of Women in the Presidency:
(1) With reference to the reply of the Minister of Communications to question 1031 on 27 November 2014, what was the total amount that (a) her department and (b) each of its entities (i) spent on and/or (ii) budgeted for advertising for each month between 1 January 2013 and 31 July 2014, excluding expenditure transferred through the Department of Communications for advertising;
(2) does such figure for each month represent the (a) total value of advertising that appeared in the media in that month, (b) amount paid in that month for advertising that may have appeared previously or (c) amount paid in advance for advertising that appeared at a later date;
(3) in each specified case, what amount did (a) her department and (b) each of its entities spend on advertising in (i) print, (ii) radio, (iii) television, (iv) online and (v) outdoor;
(4) in each specified case, what is the breakdown of advertising by (a) her department and (b) each of its entities in terms of (i) name of and (ii) amount spent on each (aa) publication, (bb) radio station, (cc) television station, (dd) website and (ee) billboards location in each province? NW173E
Reply
The Department of Women is a new department which has just been established. It is for this reason that the question is not applicable to it.
QUESTION NUMBER: 164
Mr S Mokgalapa (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
(1) With reference to the reply of the Minister of Communications to question 1031 on 27 November 2014, what was the total amount that (a) The Presidency and (b) each of its entities (i) spent on and/or (ii) budgeted for advertising for each month between 1 January 2013 and 31 July 2014, excluding expenditure transferred through the Department of Communications for advertising;
(2) does such figure for each month represent the (a) total value of advertising that appeared in the media in that month, (b) amount paid in that month for advertising that may have appeared previously or (c) amount paid in advance for advertising that appeared at a later date;
(3) in each specified case, what amount did (a) The Presidency and (b) each of its entities spend on advertising in (i) print, (ii) radio, (iii) television, (iv) online and (v) outdoor;
(4) in each specified case, what is the breakdown of advertising by (a) The Presidency and (b) each of its entities in terms of (i) name of and (ii) amount spent on each (aa) publication, (bb) radio station, (cc) television station, (dd) website and (ee) billboards location in each province? NW172E
REPLY:
The Presidency advertising expenditure and budget for 2012/2013:
|
Advertising January 2013 to March 2013
|
|||
|
|
Actual Expenditure |
(ii) Budget |
|
|
Jan |
45 187.50 |
|
169 000 |
|
Feb |
104 784.67 |
|
171 000 |
|
March |
23 070.58 |
|
143 000 |
|
Total |
173 042.75 |
|
483 000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Advertising April 2013 to March 2014 |
|||
|
|
|
|
|
|
April |
- |
|
92 000.00 |
|
May |
34 474.95 |
|
287 000.00 |
|
June |
28 584.82 |
|
105 000.00 |
|
July |
36 801.94 |
|
452 000.00 |
|
August |
25 903.34 |
|
85 000.00 |
|
Sep |
93 617.18 |
|
129 000.00 |
|
Oct |
48 221.28 |
|
137 000.00 |
|
Nov |
34 305.37 |
|
127 000.00 |
|
Dec |
348 464.90 |
|
99 000.00 |
|
Jan |
46 876.90 |
|
- |
|
Feb |
2 555.98 |
|
46 000.00 |
|
March |
26 733.72 |
|
38 000.00 |
|
Total |
726 540.38 |
|
1 597 000.00 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Advertising April 2014 to July 2014 |
|
||
|
|
|
|
|
|
April |
- |
|
31 000 |
|
May |
43 678.06 |
|
100 000 |
|
June |
167 046.81 |
|
98 000 |
|
July |
66 576.06 |
|
940 000 |
|
Total |
277 300.93 |
|
1 169 000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
1 176 884.06 |
|
|
The figure for each month represents;
Amount paid in that month for advertising that may have appeared previously
The amount spent by The Presidency on:
Print – R1 176 884.06
Regarding the breakdown of advertising by The Presidency, please note that The Presidency does not deal directly with print media but work through agencies.
Reply received: June 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 137
Ms M S Khawula (EFF) to ask the Minister of Women in The Presidency:
Whether she has found, with reference to the fact that South Africa’s world ranking in terms of gender representation in parliament dropped from 4th place to 11th place out of 87 countries, that South Africa is ranked 90th out of 148 countries in terms of social institutions and gender index,
that the majority of women feel that they have been failed by Government and the justice system, that only 23% of women occupy economic decision-making positions, that only 4% of chief executive officers in private companies are women and the conviction rate for rape is a mere 6% and that her department has ensured that the 44% representation of women in Parliament has translated to the transformation of women’s lives in society, especially those in rural areas and townships; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details in this regard? NO2206E
Reply
It is important to provide sources for all statistics if you are going to quote them. The statistics quoted are actually not from Social Institutions Gender Index but rather from the UNDP Human And Development Index report. It is also equally important to not be selective when quoting sources like the Social Institution Gender Index because the same SIGI quoting from other sources which indicates that, the rising levels of women’s representation in local government is largely attributable to the ruling African National Congress’s commitment to a minimal 30% quota for the representation of women at all levels since 1994. There are quotas at sub-national level: parties must ensure that 50% of the candidates on the party list are women, according to the Local Government Act.
The Departments role is that of monitoring mainstreaming of gender. Oversight of the conviction rates and the criminal justice system as a whole remains the priority of the Department Of Justice. Through engagement with the justice cluster we will be developing indicators to measure conviction rates as but one aspect of the system.
Reply received: June 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 132
Ms M S Khawula (EFF) to ask the Minister of Women in The Presidency:
(1) With reference to the high incidence of human trafficking in the country, which results in a high number of women and children being targeted and sold off for sexual exploitation, forced labour and drug trafficking, what (a) plans has her department put in place to address the scourge of human trafficking, in particular women trafficking and (b) targets have been set by her department in this regard;
(2) What measures has her department implemented to (a) create public awareness about the specified problem, (b) protect women from vulnerable communities who are the easiest targets of human trafficking and (c) support families who have already lost their daughters and mothers to human trafficking?
NO2199E
Reply:
- The administration of the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act, 2013 (Act 7 of 2013) is the responsibility of the Cabinet member responsible for justice, namely the Minister for Justice and Correctional Services. Section 40 of the Act provides that the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services must, after consultation with the Minister in The Presidency responsible for Performance Monitoring and Evaluation, Ministers of Finance, Home Affairs, Health, International Relations and Cooperation, Labour, Police, Social Development, State Security the Minister in The Presidency responsible for Women and the National Director of Public Prosecutions approve a national policy framework relating to all matters dealt with in the Act, in order to ensure a uniform, coordinated and cooperative approach by all government departments, organs of state and institutions in dealing with matters relating to trafficking of persons; guide the implementation and administration of the Act; and enhance service delivery as envisaged by this Act, by the development of a plan within available resources.
Your attention is drawn to the fact that whilst the President assented to this Act on 28 July 2013, it is not in operation at date of this reply. Therefore my department did not put plans in place nor did we set targets, as all Ministers and departments stipulated in this Act, must work together to ensure that we have a uniform, coordinated and cooperative approach in dealing with this matter. However, I intend to fulfil all obligations related to my mandate, as stipulated in this Act, once it is brought into operation by proclamation.
2, To create public awareness on violence against women and children including trafficking my department has launched the #365 Days of activism campaign in partnership with crimeline where awareness is raised via social media and through direct engagement with communities in various provinces. In terms of protecting women from vulnerable communities who are the easier targets of human trafficking, this the responsibility of society as a whole wherein we take collective responsibility in raising awareness my department has been engaging with learners to educate them about the dangers of drug use wherein people are lured and trafficked as drug mules. The department of social development working with DIRCO have been actively ensuring that South African children who are trafficked are returned to their families and thereby provide support to families who have already lost their daughters and mothers to human trafficking.
Reply received: June 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 111
Ms T C Memela (ANC) to ask the Minister in The Presidency: Women
(1) What contributions will her department be making at the African Union Gender Summit to be held on 25 June 2015;
Reply
This year has been declared by African Union Heads of State as the “Year of Women’s Empowerment and Development towards agenda 2063”
We are privileged to be hosting the High Level Panel on Gender Equality and Women Empowerment and a meeting of Ministers responsible of Gender and Women’s Affairs from 10th to 12th June 2015 as part of the AU Decade of Women forward.
the High Level Panel on Women empowerment and gender equality will be focusing on women’s financial inclusion in agribusiness. The theme of education, science technology and ICT is integral to achievement of women’s empowerment in agriculture and the rest of the economy.
(2) How will the women of South Africa benefit in this regard?
NO2177E
CSOs, Academia and officials will be participating at the HLP therefore they will benefit from sharing best practices on women empowerment, promoting gender equality and eradication of discrimination and gender based violence.
Reply received: June 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 109
Ms P Bhengu (ANC) to ask the Minister in The Presidency: Women
Whether her Office is currently receiving any donor funding; if so, (a) what amount and (b) for what purpose(s)? NO2175E
Reply
The department has not received any new donor funding in 2015/16.
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 93
Dr M J Cardo (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
(1) What amount did his department spend on hosting the 2014 Pan African Youth Union Congress in November 2014;
(2) What were the exact amounts spent on (a) venue hire, (b) catering, (c) accommodation for delegates, (d) transport for delegates, (e) flights for delegates arriving from outside of the country and (f) any (i) gifts or (ii) stationery given to the delegates attending the specified congress?
[NW95E]
REPLY:
|
Pan African Youth Summit |
R 2 224 462,44 |
|
Venue hire (including translation and communication equipment) |
R 756 150,76 |
|
Accommodation |
R 610 716,51 |
|
Stationery and printing (including translation costs) |
R 256 122,68 |
|
International flights |
R 204 468,41 |
|
Catering |
R 166 836,00 |
|
Gifts |
R 81 387,08 |
|
Transport |
R 78 482,00 |
|
Volunteer uniforms & stipends |
R 70 299,00 |
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NO: 92
Date Published: 12 February 2015
The Leader of the Opposition Mmusi Maimane (DA) to ask the President of the Republic:
(1). Whether, with reference to his reply to question 2251 on 24 November 2014, he can provide the (a) agendas and (b) minutes for the National Nuclear Energy Executive Coordination Committee (NNEECC) meetings held on (i) 10 October 2013, (ii) 20 May 2014, (iii) 22 July 2014, (iv) 30 July 2014 and (v) 5 September 2014;
(2). whether he can also provide the agendas and minutes for any of the NNEECC meetings that may have taken place since 5 September 2014? NW94E
REPLY:
The National Nuclear Energy Executive Coordination Committee (NNEECC) was established by Cabinet in November 2011. The NNEECC is tasked with providing oversight and decision making on the nuclear policy and new build programme.
In June 2014, the National Nuclear Energy Executive Coordination Committee (NNEECC) was converted into the Energy Security Cabinet Subcommittee (ESCS) responsible for oversight, coordination and direction for the activities for the entire energy sector.
I chair this committee and it is comprised of the following members:
- Minister of Energy, Ms Tina Joemat-Pettersson;
- Minister of Public Enterprise, Ms Lynne Brown;
- Minister of International Relation and Cooperation, Ms Maite Nkoana-Mashabane;
- Minister of State Security, Mr David Mahlobo;
- Minister of Finance, Mr Nhlanhla Nene;
- Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Rob Davies;
- Minister of Economic Development, Mr Ebrahim Patel;
- Minister or Mineral Resource, Advocate Ngoako Ramatlhodi;
- Minister of Environmental Affairs, Ms Edna Molewa;
- Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Ms Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula.
This committee reports to Cabinet and its proceedings and documents are classified under the Minimum Information Security Standard Act (MISS Act) as TOP SECRET. As a result I am unable to share the agenda and minutes of the meetings held by the Energy Security Cabinet Subcommittee.
Reply received: March 2015
QUESTION NUMBER: 91
91. Ms A M Dreyer (DA) to ask the Minister in The Presidency:
(1) With reference to the (a) National Anti-Corruption Forum, (b) National Anti-Corruption Programme, (c) National Anti-Corruption Coordinating Committee, (d) National Integrity System, (e) National Anti-Corruption Hotline and (f) the Anti-Corruption Inter-Ministerial Committee, (i) which of these initiatives are still operational and (ii) what examples are there of each initiative’s most significant or high-profile successes;
(2) how does the existing bodies differ from the new Public Administration Ethics, Integrity and Disciplinary Technical Assistance Unit, as articulated in section 15 of the Public Administration Management Act, Act 11 of 2014? NW93E
I wish to inform the Honourable Member that the National Anti-Corruption Forum (NCF) is still in existence,and it has in the past few years actively participated in the International Anti-Corruption Day which is held annually. This day, to commemorate the United Nations Convention Against Corruption, is celebrated as part of the cooperation between the United Nations Office Against Drugs and Crime, the University of South Africa and the Public Service Commission.
The National Anti-Corruption Programme was developed under the auspices of the NCF. Similalrly a draft National Integrity System was developed and presented to the NACF in 2011.
Very good progress has been recorded with respect to the National Anti-Corruption Hotline. Achievements worth noting include 3 570 officials who were found guilty of misconduct related to corrupt activities between September 2004 and March 2015 as well as the recovery of R350 million from officials involved in cases of corruption.
The work National Anti-Corruption Coordinating Committee which later became the Anti Corruption Work Group has since been taken over by the Anti Corruption Task Team.
The use of a multi-agency approach to the fight against corruption has been endorsed by the National Development Plan (NDP). The NDP underscores the importance of ensuring that a resilient anti-corruption system is in place. Ensuring such a resilient system includes instituting measures to coordinate all anti-corruption responsibilities and structures. To this end President J.G. Zuma established an Anti-Corruption Inter-Ministerial Committee (ACIMC) in June 2014. The ACIMC is mandated to coordinate and oversee the work of state organs aimed at combatting corruption in the public and private sectors. The ACTT has since 2013 to date coordinated the securing the conviction of 56 persons for corruption or offences relating to corruption where the amount benefited per case is more than R5 million. In addition, the ACTT has during the same period overseen the oattainment of freezing orders to the value of R2.2 billion.
The Public Administration Management Act, Act 11 of 2014 has been assented to by the President but has not yet come into effect. Consequently the Public Administration Ethics, Integrity and Disciplinary Technical Assistance Unit contemplated in the said Act has not yet been established. When it is subsequently established the Unit will perform the following functions:
• Provide technical assistance and support to institutions in all spheres of government regarding the management of ethics, integrity and disciplinary matters relating to misconduct in the public administration;
• Develop the norms and standards on integrity, ethics, conduct and discipline in the public administration;
• Build capacity within institutions to initiate and institute disciplinary proceedings into misconduct;
• Strengthen government oversight of ethics, integrity and discipline, and where necessary, in cases where systemic weaknesses are identified, to intervene;
• Promote and enhance good ethics and integrity within the public administration; and
- To cooperate with other institutions and organs of state to fulfil its functions.