ATC220308: Report of the Portfolio Committee on Communications on a petition from the residents of Jansenville and Klipplaat, dated 8 March 2022

Communications and Digital Technologies

Report of the Portfolio Committee on Communications on a petition from the residents of Jansenville and Klipplaat, dated 8 March 2022

 

The Portfolio Committee on Communications, having considered a petition from the residents of located in the Dr Beyers Naudé Local Municipality in the Eastern Cape, on 22 February 2022 calling on the Assembly to investigate the failure of the Jansenville Post Office to serve its residents, reports as follows:

 

On 6 December 2021, the above-mentioned petition was referred to the Portfolio Committee on Communications (the Committee) for consideration and report. National Assembly Rule 347(1) determines that a member of the National Assembly must lodge a petition with the Secretary to Parliament for approval and tabling by the Speaker. The petition was lodged in the name of Ms S Graham-Maré, MP. On 22 February 2022 and 1 March 2022, the Committee considered the petition.

 

1. Oral presentations made to the Committee

 

1. Ms S Graham-Maré (Member of the National Assembly)

On 22 February 2022, Ms Graham-Maré gave a background on the purpose of the petition from the residents of Jansenville and Klipplaat, located in the Dr Beyers Naudé Local Municipality in the Eastern Cape. This included allegations of unsuitable behavior by the Manager of the SAPO branch. She indicated that the main concern was the lack of cash in the branch. She implored for more coordination between government entities with the South African Post Office (SAPO) on SASSA issues and for better communication with the residents to be prioritised.

 

She called on the National Assembly to investigate the failure of the Jansenville Post Office to serve its residents. She further called on the Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies to immediately intervene and resolve the issues at the Jansenville Post Office and to address the following: (a) that the Manager of the Post Office ensure that it stays open for the advertised hours; (b) that the Manager ensure that there is sufficient money available to pay the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant benefit to those beneficiaries that are due to be paid; (c) that an investigation be launched into the management, financial affairs and ongoing lack of consistent service to the residents of Jansenville and Klipplaat and (d) that the Minister takes the necessary action to address the findings of the investigation.

 

 

1. Ms N Mona (Chief Executive Officer) and Mr S Majombozi (Acting Deputy Chairperson) of SAPO

 

The Department of Communications informed SAPO on 7 December 2021 of a petition by the Jansenville and Klipplaat community and requested SAPO to attend to the petition and provide it with feedback. On 14 December 2021, the management team of SAPO, Eastern Cape, made contact with Ms Graham-Maré to better understand the complaint.

 

The major concern was the unavailability of cash to pay approved beneficiaries on a regular basis. Cash depletion and outages would be closely monitored and avoided (the SAPO team explained the challenges faced by Post Offices in ‘dead areas’). A WhatsApp group was created between SAPO and Councilors in order to improve on the communication gap that existed. An additional staff member was transferred from another post office to increase service capacity of the branch. An unannounced visit/sting operation would be conducted to investigate the allegations of malpractice (this visit was conducted on 21 January 2022) and the branch would receive more attention by the Area Manager to monitor service and ensure service failures are reported timeously and corrected. Mitigation and corrective actions were agreed upon.

 

1. Observations

The Committee noted:

1. and welcomed the presentation made;
2. and thanked MP Graham-Maré on bringing these issues to the attention of the Committee;
3. the legacy challenges of SAPO especially relating to historical debt and inadequate funding;
4. and commended SAPO for showing signs of improvement;
5. with serious concern the exodus of executives at SAPO;
6. with greater concern the vacancies at board level;
7. the allegations against the SAPO staff of Jansenville and Klipplaat;
8. with comfort that allegations against the branch manager were being investigated and that consequence management would be implemented;
9. with concern that Jansenville and Klipplaat and other post offices have only one staff member;
10. that because of the implementation of the SRD, a new dynamic system has been implemented, including the deployment of staff resources to branches with fewer staff;
11. and commended the engagement between SAPO and Jansenville and Klipplaat office;
12. that mitigation factors were taken into consideration to resolve the challenges experienced;
13. that the Councilor in the area was committed to resolving the challenges in the area;
14. that SAPO has settled the outstanding rental fees to the Jansenville and Klipplaat Post Office; and
15. that SAPO has also made an effort to pay most municipalities and other debts owed, by concentrating on the smaller debt first and paying off these debts.

 

1. Recommendations

The Committee recommends that the Minister ensure that:

1. the CEO of SAPO presents in writing steps taken to investigate the malpractice at Jansenville and Klipplaat Post Office after due process in terms of investigations that have been undertaken; and
2. SAPO continues to provide progress reports on the ongoing investigations at the Jansenville and Klipplaat Post Office.

 

Report to be considered.