ATC220511: Report of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services on the Annual Performance Plan for 2022/23 of the Office of the Chief Justice and Vote 27: Office of the Chief Justice, dated 11 May 2022

Justice and Correctional Services

1. Report of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services on the Annual Performance Plan for 2022/23 of the Office of the Chief Justice and Vote 27: Office of the Chief Justice, dated 11 May 2022

The Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services, having considered the Annual Performance Plan for 2022/23 of the Office of the Chief Justice and Vote 27: Office of the Chief Justice, reports as follows:

Context

On 3 May 2022, the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services addressed the Committee on the political priorities relevant to the mandate of the Office of the Chief Justice (OCJ). The Minister’s speech is available from the Committee Secretariat, as well as on the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development’s website.

The OCJ presented its Annual Performance Plan 2022/23 and budget for the 2022 MTEF on 3 May 2022. The presentation is available from the Committee Secretariat.

The meeting took place on the Zoom virtual platform.

Policy overview

Fiscal Policy

Medium‐term fiscal policy remains focused on reducing the budget deficit and stabilising the debt‐to‐GDP ratio. Although Government has attempted to slow expenditure growth by reducing baseline budgets and setting ceilings on compensation spending, the gap between revenue and expenditure has widened, increasing pressure on basic service delivery.

The 2022 Budget is the second main budget to be tabled since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic. Allocations over the MTEF period respond directly to the effects of the pandemic while aiming to grow the economy.

The Peace and Security function, of which the OCJ is a part, accounts for approximately 12% of government’s consolidated expenditure. The function is allocated R220.7 billion in 2022/23, R217.0 billion in 2023/24 and R226.6 billion in 2024/25; and accounts for 12% of consolidated government expenditure.

Notably spending on Peace and Security has declined on average by -8.5% between 2012/13 and 2021/22 and will continue to decrease over the 2022 MTEF by -3.1%. As most departments falling in this function are labour intensive (the OCJ included), spending reductions largely affect personnel.

The function’s baseline is increased by R15 billion over the MTEF period, from R645.4 to R660.4 billion. The R15 billion net increase includes R12.4 billion for compensation of employees’ budgets within the function.

Overview of the Vote for the 2022 MTEF

The OCJ is allocated R2.38 billion in 2022/23, compared with R2.33 billion in 2021/22 (adjusted down from R2.45 billion). The budget is expected to increase over the MTEF to R2.36 billion in 2023/24 and R2.46 billion in 2024/25.
The allocation for programmes is R1.27 billion or 52.5% of the total allocation, while the remaining amount of R1.12 billion comprises the direct charge for Judges’ salaries.
In terms of economic classification, an amount of R1.77 billion is allocated to compensation of employees, R371.9 million to good and services, R135.8 million to transfers and subsidies and R112 million for purchase of capital assets.

Budget allocation per programme 2022 MTEF

Programme	Adjusted Appropriation 2021/22	MTEF			Average Expenditure/ Total % 2021/22-2024/25
	Adjusted Appropriation 2021/22	2022/23	2023/24	2024/25
	R million
Administration	246.2	255.7	260.6	271.9	10.8%
Superior Court Services	937.0	958.8	919.4	961.0	39.5%
Judicial Education and Support	58.6	51.4	52.9	55.4 ‐	2.3%
Subtotal	1 241.8	1 265.8	1 232.9	1 288.3	52.5%
Judges’ Salaries	1 118.4	1 122.6	1 124.7	1 175.2	47.5%
Total	2 360.2	2 388.4	2 357.6	2 463.5	100.0%
Changes to 2021 Budget Estimate	29.9	39.9	0	-	-

Budget allocation per economic classification 2022 MTEF

Economic Classification	Adjusted Appropriation 2021/22	MTEF			Average Expenditure/ Total % 2021/22-2024/25
	Adjusted Appropriation 2021/22	2022/23	2023/24	2024/25
	R’ million
Compensation of employees (including Judges’ remuneration)	1 779.9	1 768.6	1 740.7	1 818.9	74.3%
Good and services	337.8	371.9	365.2	381.6	15.2%
Transfers and subsidies	133.6	135.8	136.5	142.6	5.7%
Payments for capital assets	108.9	112.0	115.2	120.4	4.8%
Total	2 360.2	2 388.4	2 357.6	2 463.5	100.0%

Strategic and annual planning

The OCJ’s core function is that of providing administrative support to the judiciary and has adopted the following strategic outcomes:

Effective and efficient administrative support.
Improved court efficiency.
Enhanced judicial education and support.

In this way, the OCJ responds to Chapter 14 of the National Development Plan ‘Promoting accountability and fighting corruption’, particularly contributing to the focal area ‘strengthen judicial governance and the rule of law’ by:

Accelerating reforms to implement a judiciary-led court administration.
Ensuring an efficient court system.
Reducing inefficiencies in the administration of the courts.
Ensuring access to justice.

The Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) 2019 – 2024 acknowledges that the challenges of poverty, inequality and unemployment continue to hold back national development. To address these challenges, the MTSF identifies a number of priority areas, including ‘A capable, ethical and developmental state’ and ‘Social cohesion and safe communities’. The MTSF also recognizes the lack of access to resources and opportunity for Women, Youth and People with Disabilities as cross-cutting, requiring a variety of interventions.

Implementation of the MTSF 2019-2024 was disrupted by the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and the declaration of a National State of Disaster on the 15 March 2020. As a result, the MTSF has been revised to include the following critical interventions: to defeat the coronavirus pandemic; to accelerate economic recovery; to implement economic reforms to create sustainable jobs and drive inclusive growth; and to fight corruption and strengthen the capacity of the state. These commitments will provide the focus for annual plans.

The OCJ plans to contribute to the revised MTSF priorities as follows:

‘Priority 1: A capable, ethical and developmental State’ by:

Promoting an ethical culture.
Integrating ‘Batho Pele’ principles into the Department’s institutional culture.
Adherence to corporate governance principles such as leadership, strategy and performance, and risk and stakeholders’ management.
Improved court systems.
Modernisation of the court processes and systems.

‘Priority 2: Economic transformation and job creation’ by implementing equity programmes targeting employment and empowerment of youth, women, and people with disabilities in both its recruitment and procurement processes.
‘Priority 6: ‘Social cohesion and safe communities’, by ensuring access to a safe and secure court environment and improving the integrity of court processes/ outcomes, as well as capacitating/ resourcing the courts in order for them execute their mandate.

Specifically, the OCJ’s Annual Performance Plan 2022/23 aims to:

Support the Chief Justice in ensuring judicial accountability.
Implement initiatives that contribute to broadening and improving access to justice and services of the Superior Courts.
Ensure an efficient court system and provide judicial support.
Reduce inefficiencies in court administration through modernised systems, processes and infrastructure.
Implement measures that are intended to address the impact of COVID-19.

In addition, the 2022 APP reflects the following medium term strategic focus areas:

Strengthening capacity for ensuring business continuity management.
Ensuring that ICT remains a strategic partner to Business.
Curbing opportunities for fraud and corruption.
Promoting professional ethics within the organisation.
Improving the OCJ’s capacity with more focus on the core business.
Implementing health and wellness programmes.
Ensuring occupational health and safety.
Training of Judicial Officers.

Aligning planning with expenditure

Over the MTEF period, the OCJ will focus on improving access to justice and the services of the superior courts, increasing access to judicial education courses, and implementing initiatives to address the impact of Covid-19:
In terms of economic classification, compensation of employees is the largest cost driver, accounting for an estimated 74.3% of its total budget over the medium term. However, the number of personnel is to decline over the medium term from 2 481 in 2021 to 2416 in 2024/25. In 2022/23, the number of personnel decreases by 56 to 2425.

At programme level,

Under Administration:

The approved ICT Strategy is in place. ICT infrastructure upgrades are expected to cost R22.4 million over the medium term.
During 2022/23 the OCJ will continue with digitisation of the court system, with a focus on prioritisation of Court Online and the digitisation of court records, as well as the e-Judiciary system.
The fight against fraud and corruption will be intensified and the fraud prevention and anti-corruption policy is in place.

Under Superior Court Services: To strengthen access to its services, the Department plans to employ 5 researchers and 19 registrars over the period ahead. This additional capacity will enable it to increase the percentage of default judgments finalised within 14 days and ensure that all warrants of release are delivered within 1 day of being issued. Funding for these initiatives is with the Superior Court Services programme’s allocation of R2.8 billion over the MTEF period.
Under Judicial Education and Support: Activities in the South African Judicial Education Institute sub-programme in the Judicial Education and Support programme will continue to centre on providing education and training through virtual platforms, with the number of courses provided set to increase from 105 in 2021/22 to 120 in 2024/25. As a result of this shift away from physical venues, expenditure in this sub-programme will decrease from R34.7 million in 2021/22 to R30.9 million in 2024/25. However, related ICT infrastructure upgrades are expected to cost R22.4 million over the same period. Similarly, with the increasing demand for virtual meetings and other event streaming services, estimated spending in the Corporate Services subprogramme in the Administration programme is expected to increase from R151.9 million in 2021/22 to R173.9 million in 2024/25.

Risks and mitigation strategies

The OCJ has updated its key risks and mitigation strategies for 2022/23 as follows:

Risks and mitigation strategies 2022/23

Risks	Mitigation
Outcome: Effective and efficient administrative support
Possible exposure to fraud and corruption. [Possible exposure to fraud and corruption due to the increasing economic pressures and the subversion of the current controls in place resulting in increased opportunity for fraud and corruption. The OCJ might not be able to timeously prevent and detect the complex fraud and corruption incidents.]	Continuous awareness of policies. Strengthen internal controls relating to financial management and court order processes. Monitor the implementation of fraud prevention and anti-corruption strategy.
Delays in the implementation of the Court Online system due to external dependencies.	Reinforce stakeholder relations to ensure commitment to project resourcing.
Possible cyber and information security incidents (breaches and hacking).	Accelerate the implementation of the Information Security Management programme. Conduct network and vulnerability audits. Establishment of the Threat and Vulnerability Management programme.
Inability to fully capacitate the OCJ to operate in the new normal. [The OCJ does not have adequate resources (skills and budget for the tools of trade) to implement alternative/new business model. Implementation of the budget cuts affect the adequate provisioning of required tools of trade. The OCJ does not have adequate skills sets to operate in the new normal. Possible COVID-19 infections and spread among employees and/or members of the public which could result in services not been rendered due to limited staff and/or resources.]	Reprioritization of resources to implement the new way of doing business. Skills capacitation to operate in the new normal.
	Implement and monitor compliance to the COVID-19 regulations. Deep cleaning and sanitisation of the affected area at the courts and National Office after the confirmed cases were reported.
Outcome: Improved court efficiency
Inadequate administrative support to ensure court efficiency	Prioritise the appointment of registrars. Continuous training of registrars.
Outcome: Enhanced judicial performance
Inadequate resources to conduct judicial education and provide support	Implementation of the virtual and e-learning module for Judicial Education.

Programmes

Programme 1: Administration

The purpose of this programme is to provide strategic leadership, management and support services to the Department. The programme consists of the following sub-programmes:

The Management subprogramme, which provides administrative, planning, monitoring, evaluation, performance reporting and risk management functions necessary to ensure effective functioning of the Department.

The Corporate Services sub-programme, which provides an integrated Human Resources Management (HRM), Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Security Management Support Services to the Department.
The Finance Administration subprogramme, which provides overall financial, asset and supply chain management services to the Judiciary and the Department.
The Internal Audit and Risk Management sub-programme, which provides overall internal audit and forensic audit services to the Department.
The Office Accommodation sub-programme, which provides for the acquisition of office accommodation.

Output indicators and targets are as follows:

Administration: Output indicators and annual targets

Output Indicator	Annual Targets
Output Indicator	2021/22	2022/23	2023/24	2024/25
Outcome: Effective and efficient administrative support
Audit outcome for the OCJ	Clean audit outcome	Clean audit outcome	Clean audit outcome	Clean audit outcome
Percentage of designated employees who submitted financial disclosures within timeframes	100%	100%	100%	100%
Percentage of funded vacant posts on PERSAL per year	10% or lower	10% or lower	10% or lower	10% or lower
Percentage of staff in the department comprised of youth	30%	30%	30%	30%
Percentage of women representation in Senior Management Service (SMS)	50%	50%	50%	50%
Percentage of people with disabilities representation in the department	2%	2%	2%	2%
Court online system implemented at service centres	2	5	5	11
Number of Employee health and wellness programmes implemented	9	9	9	9
Percentage of fraud cases investigated within 60 working days	-	75%	75%	75%
Number of Fraud Prevention and Anti-Corruption awareness sessions conducted	-	25	25	25
Percentage of tenders awarded to suppliers with level 4 and above BBBEE status	80%	80%	80%	80%

The OCJ has the following COVID-19 related indicators and targets for 2021/22;

Administration: COVID-19 related indicators and targets 2022/23

Output indicator	Estimated performance 2021/22	Target 2022/23
Number of COVID-19 OHS inspections conducted at OCJ	4	4
Number of COVID-19 awareness programmes implemented	4	4
Number of COVID-19 related trainings conducted for safety officers	4	4
Number of COVID-19 compliance reports produced	4	4
Number of COVID-19 risk mitigation reports produced	4	4

Planned expenditure:

The Administration programme is allocated R255.7 million in 2022/23 (compared with an adjusted budget of R246.2 million in 2021/22), R260.6 million in 2023/24 and R271.9 million in 2024/25.
Expenditure in the Corporate Services sub-programme in the Administration programme is expected to increase from R151.9 million in 2021/22 to R173.9 million in 2024/25. This is to improve data management by implementing an electronic filing system that will allow cases and evidence to be accessed more easily, and cloud-based software that enables evidence to be digitised in court to streamline court proceedings. Implementing these systems forms part of the broader implementation of the integrated criminal justice strategy led by the Justice Department. By modernising systems and processes, the OCJ aims to increase its capacity to ensure that court services are more widely available and improve their quality.
The number of personnel in Programme 1 is expected to decrease from 163 in 2021/22, at a cost of R111.6 million to 151 in 2024/25, at a cost of R105.9 million. The decrease in personnel is as result of financial constraints that will prevent identified posts from being filled as they become vacant.

Programme 2: Superior Court Services

This programme provides judicial support and court administration services to the Superior Courts. The programme consists of the following sub-programmes:

The Administration of Superior Courts subprogramme provides administrative and technical support to the Superior Courts, monitors the overall performance of the Superior Courts, and enhances judicial stakeholder relations.
The Constitutional Court subprogramme funds the activities and operations of the Constitutional Court.
The Supreme Court of Appeal subprogramme funds the activities and operations of the Supreme Court of Appeal.
The High Courts’ subprogramme funds the activities and operations of the various high court divisions.
The Specialized Courts subprogramme funds the activities and operations of the labour, land, electoral and competition courts.

All performance indicators and targets that address court performance were removed, leaving only those that relate to quasi-judicial performance and support to the Superior Courts. Output indicators and annual targets are as follows:

Superior Court Services – Output indicators and annual targets

Output Indicator	Medium Term Targets
Output Indicator	2021/22	2022/23	2023/24	2024/25
Outcome: Improved court efficiency
Percentage of default judgments finalised by Registrars within 14 days	72%	74%	76%	78%
Percentage of taxation of legal costs finalised within 60 days from date of set down	75%	80%	85%	90%
Percentage of warrants of release delivered within one day of release granted	100%	100%	100%	100%
No. of monitoring reports on Court Order integrity produced	4	4	4	4
Number of Judicial Case Flow Management Performance reports produced	4	4	4	4
Number of reports on enhancement of court order integrity produced	4	4	4	4

Planned expenditure

The Superior Courts Services programme is allocated R958.8 million in 2022/23 (compared with an adjusted budget of R937.0 in 2021/22); R919.4 million in 2023/24; and R961.0 million in 2024/25.
The increase in the expenditure for this programme is mainly due to an increase of the capital allocation to meet the cost requirements of the Judges’ vehicles.
Due to the labour-intensive nature of the Department’s work, an estimated 67.8% (R 1.9 billion over the MTEF) of the budget in this programme is earmarked for spending on compensation of employees, increasing from R648.2 million in 2022/23 to R651.7 million in 2024/25.
The number of personnel in Programme 2 is expected to decrease from 2 010 in 2021/22 at the cost of R653.7 million to 1 682 in 2024/25 at the cost of R651.7 million.
The roll-out and implementation of the Court Online system, as well as modernisation of court processes will play a key role in ensuring that the decrease in the number of personnel does not impact on the provision of services, as well as increasing access to justice for all.

Programme 3: Judicial Education and Support

Judicial Education and Support provides education programmes to Judicial Officers, including policy development and research services for the optimal administration of justice.

The programme has the following sub-programmes:

The South African Judicial Education Institute sub-programme funds the activities of the SAJEI to provide training for Judicial Officers.
The Judicial Policy, Research and Support sub-programme funds the provision of advisory opinions on policy development and regulatory services to the Judiciary and the Department.
The Judicial Service Commission subprogramme provides secretariat and administrative support services to the Judicial Service Commission to perform its constitutional and legislative mandates effectively.

Output indicators and targets are as follows:

Judicial Education and Support – Output indicators and annual targets

Output Indicator	Annual Targets
Output Indicator	2021/22	2022/23	2023/24	2024/25
No. of judicial education courses conducted	105	110	115	120
No. of research monographs for Judicial Education produced per year	2	2	2	2
No. of litigation reports produced	4	5	5	5
No. of reports on judicial appointments and judicial complaints produced	3	3	3	3
Number of reports on the status of disclosures for Judges Registrable Interests produced	-	2	2	2

Planned expenditure:

The Judicial Education and Support programme is allocated R52.1 million for 2022/23 (compared with an adjusted budget of R58.6 million in 2021/22); R53.2 million in 2023/24; and R55.7 million in 2024/25. The spending focus for this programme remains on conducting training for judicial officers.
The number of personnel for Programme 3 is expected to increase from 42 officials, at the cost of R26.9 million, to 51 officials in 2024/25 at the cost of R27 million.

2021 Budgetary Review and Recommendation Report (BRRR)

In its 2021 BRRR, the Committee observed the following:

The Committee commended the OCJ on maintaining its clean audit opinion. The Committee also commended the OCJ on its strong governance, noting sound management of problems when they occur.
Transfer of functions to the OCJ. The Committee noted the lack of progress in drafting the legislation and finalising a court administration model that will allow for functions presently undertaken by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (such as security services at the courts) to the OCJ.
ICT security. The Committee noted inadequacies in ICT security and user access management, as well as ICT operational inefficiencies as areas for concern. The OCJ assured the Committee that it takes ICT security very seriously and is working hard to strengthen its ICT environment.
Court modernisation. The Committee noted that the OCJ reports that it was unable in 2020/21 to roll out the court online system at two service centres as planned because of the pandemic, as well as because of system failures as a result of the security breach in September 2020. In addition, the project to refresh the ICT infrastructure was delayed as a result of the non-responsiveness of the market at the stage of sourcing/tenders. However, there has been progress since: user equipment has been overhauled, licences have been procured, there is Wi-Fi at courts for judges and officials, the bandwidth has been increased, etc. and rollout of the CaseLines solution is in progress.
Employment of persons with disabilities. The Committee noted that the OCJ has not been able to achieve its employment targets for persons with disabilities.

Committee’s observations

Judicial governance and court administration model and single judiciary. The Committee welcomes the Minister’s announcement that he intends, at long last, to introduce legislation to replace the Magistrates’ Courts Act, 1944, and the Magistrates Act, 1993, towards the establishment of a single judiciary, as well as take the Executive’s response to the Judiciary’s proposal concerning a judicial governance and court administration model to Cabinet in this financial year. The Committee urges the Minister to introduce these as a matter of urgency. Not only is the establishment of a single judiciary a constitutional imperative but also the lack of an appropriate policy and legislative framework contributes to the many inefficiencies and other challenges that our judicial system experiences.

Infrastructure and maintenance. During its recent oversight visits to several superior and magistrate’s courts, the Committee witnessed first-hand very serious infrastructure and maintenance problems. As many of our court buildings are very old, the failure to maintain them quickly becomes a refurbishment/renovation project. Leaking roofs that remain unfixed, ceilings that must be replaced, broken air-conditioning, water shortages and the lack of or inadequate generators are only some of the infrastructure-related difficulties that undermine the efficient running of court matters. At the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), for example, the generator is only able to light the corridors during outages and load shedding. As the courtrooms do not have windows, it is impossible for matters to be heard when the electricity is off. This makes mockery of the right of access to justice. The Committee is aware that, as the infrastructure budget is with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, the OCJ has the challenging role of liaison between the Judiciary, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure and the Justice Department. The Committee, however, notes that the OCJ’s assurances that the challenges were raised at the SCA are being attended to but is concerned that it would seem that action is finally being taken only after the Judiciary had raised its complaints about court conditions with the Committee.

Court modernisation through ICT solutions. The Committee notes that during 2022/23 the OCJ will continue with ICT related initiatives to modernise the court system, prioritising the further roll out of Court Online in the Superior Courts and the digitisation of court records. We have repeatedly supported ICT solutions as a way of making our judicial system more effective and, finally, more accessible. However, given our observation of the deplorable conditions at many courts, we question whether investment in technology can have the desired outcome and impact unless necessary attention is also given to ensuring that our courts have access to the basics, such as running water and electricity when there are outages.

Tools of trade. The Committee notes the Judiciary’s complaint that tools of trade, such as laptops, are bought without consulting the affected judges about their needs. The Committee acknowledges the OCJ’s explanation that the laptops in question were bought because they have the right specifications to allow for working virtually. Furthermore, the OCJ did not buy the laptops: these were bought through SITA making use of transversal contracts although the OCJ provided the specifications. Also, the Judiciary has a committee that looks specifically at ICT.

Still, it seems that there is a perception among the judiciary that the executive does not consult and this is causing some unhappiness. The Committee suggests that the OCJ pay greater attention to improving its communication with the Judiciary at all levels so that those who will be affected are brought on board from a very early stage.

Case backlogs. The Committee remains extremely concerned about the increased number of backlog cases. There is justifiable concern that the increased case backlogs may eventually overwhelm the legal system, undermining the right of access to justice. The Committee acknowledges that the OCJ is unable to provide an input on the backlogs, as court performance lies with the Chief Justice and Heads of Court.

Capacity. We have observed repeatedly that our courts need enough capacity to efficiently deliver court services in line with the standards and the court rules. At present, the OCJ has a staff shortage but there are no funds available to employ additional staff. Consequently, when vacancies arise, posts that support core business are prioritised. However, with greater automation of court processes, personnel will be freed up for deployment elsewhere in the organisation.

Storage of court records. A lack of space makes storing old court files very challenging. The implementation of the Court Online solution will assist going forward but does not address the challenge of storing older records. The Committee notes that the OCJ has made a submission to the IJS for funding to assist with the digitisation of old court records and supports this.

Appreciation

The Committee wishes to thank the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, Mr R Lamola, and the Deputy Ministers: Mr J Jeffery and InKosi Patekile Holomisa, for the political overview.

The Committee also wishes to extend its appreciation to the Secretary-General, Ms M Sejosengwe, and the officials of the OCJ for their assistance in this process.

Recommendations

The Committee, having considered the Office of the Chief Justice’s Annual Performance Plan 2022/23, recommends to the House that it be approved.

The Committee, having considered the Budget Vote 27: Office of the Chief Justice and Judicial Administration, recommends to the House that it be approved.

Report to be considered

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