MEDIA BRIEFING BY MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS, MANGOSUTHU BUTHELEZI, & MINISTER OF PUBLIC SERVICE & ADMINISTRATION, GERALDINE FRASER-MOLELKETI
10 February 2000
Both Ministers presented their briefings. Here follows a synopsis of the question and answer session that followed.
Media Questions for the Minister of Public Service & Administration Q. Could you give us an indication of the numbers to be affected by the right sizing.
A. We have said that retrenchments will be the last resort. We will look at a number of options for example, reviewing the utilisation of medical aid, reviewing the leave structure and the like. If you look at leave and overtime, we spend about R2.1 billion per annum.
Q. What is the status of the Personnel Expenditure Review.
A. Cabinet has already adopted the Wage Policy as drafted. My Department and the Minister of Finance will discuss the overall costing of the policy.
Q. Concerning the last paragraph of your report, are you going to strictly apply the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA).
A. In terms of leave, we do want to effect the BCEA. However, doctors and dentists, for example, claim about 45% of overtime due to irregular working hours, this scenario is unacceptable.
Media Questions for the Minister of Home Affairs Q. How much does Government lose on these fraudulent identity documents.
A. This question was not directly answered.
Q. How much will HANIS cost.
A. For first time issue, we intend to supply the smart card free.
A media member commented that the introduction of HANIS will influence people who do not have IDs not to apply, since they know that HANIS is on the way.
Q. Could you please comment on corruption and mismanagement that is rife in your Department.
A. My Department was the first one to be awarded the Batho Pele award for being the best. You must remember that any problems that we experienced arose out of the fact that for seven months we operated without a Director General and so we had to deal with a lot of backlog.
Appendix 1: Briefing by Minister of Public Service & Administration, Geraldine Fraser-Molelketi
I would like to use the opportunity of my press briefing to reinforce the message of the President, one of hope and one that captures a nation and committed team at work, we have never been in a better position to realise our vision!"
On the Public Service in particular he stated, "We are still faced with the task of completing the process of restructuring the machinery of government". All departments, including the DPSA, SAMDI and the Public Service Commission, will continue this year to focus on initiatives aimed at improving the ability and readiness of our public service to deliver on government priorities.
Our focus is as follows: Focus on strengthening management capacity in the public service
l We have initiated programs to raise the skill levels of our managers. A particular focus will be the senior management level and managers of service delivery institutions, e.g. prisons, schools, hospitals. To this end we have organised a high level Senior Executive Programme, and SAMDI is co-ordinating programmes targeted at managers of service delivery institutions.
l We are reviewing the conditions of service for senior managers and professionals in the public service. This will incorporate measures to attract and retain them in the public service. The report of such a process will be made available soon.
A Performance system, whereby managers enter into contract with their principals was introduced on 1 July 1999, and is being continually monitored for effectiveness.
THE ABOVE CLEARLY CONTRIBUTES TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE
OBJECTIVE: * "THE RAISING OF THE SKILLS LEVELS WITHIN THE PUBLIC SECTOR AND RETAINING PROFESSIONAL PERSONNEL"
The retention of professional personnel is also dealt with in the wage policy.
Measures and strategies to improve delivery of services
l We have initiated partnerships with department that are responsible for delivering on key government priorities. Department of Public Works in promoting commercialisation, co-operatisation and efficiency of service delivery and Department of Home Affairs in re-engineering of business process and organisational design.
l The Department, through SITA, is putting in place infrastructure to modernise government, particularly through the application of IT and a strategic framework to maximise IT utilisation in government. Some of the projects include automation of the court system and various electronic service delivery initiatives that will enhance the delivery of services by government. To this end we will soon be appointing a Government Chief Information Officer, and establishing the Council of Information Officers to direct the use of IT in the government.
l We will reorganise the manner in which government delivers services with a view to improving efficiency. Such re-organising will encompass an improvement in the efficiency of existing institutions, utilise Public-Private partnerships, establish agencies within the government and co-operate with civil society to improve delivery.
To give further effect to this SAMDI is repositioning itself to provide organisation development service to departments rather than focus narrowly on training. This comprehensive, holistic and integrated approach should impact more effectively on service delivery.
THESE INITIATIVES RAISE ASPECTS RELATED TO WORK CONTRIBUTING TO:
IMPROVING MANAGEMENT, FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND SERVICE
DELIVERY."
Enhancing efficiency of departments and rooting out corruption
l Last year we initiated a pilot in three Provinces with the view to roll it over to other provinces. We will now support six provinces, (Northern Province, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Free State, Mpumalanga and Northern Cape) through our lntegrated Provincial Support program that has a combined donor support grant of R50 million over the next 18 months. To date achievements in the three provinces include among other capacity development, audits and drafting of management plans.
l Implementation of the Anti-corruption Summit resolutions including
1. Setting up a National Co-ordination Committee
2. Establishing anti-corruption hotlines
3. Establishing whistle-blowing mechanisms
4. Establishing an asset register for senior managers.
l The Public Service Commission, by mid-year will introduce instruments to evaluate the performance of Heads of Department / Directors General. This will ensure that HODs and DGs are properly evaluated on Service Delivery and the efficiency and effectiveness of their departments.
l Develop a risk management framework for the Public Service to, inter alia, minimise risks of financial mismanagement, fraud and nepotism, in order to enhance the efficiency and quality of service delivery
l Focus on supporting the Criminal Justice Cluster through management audits (already started) with the Department of Correctional Services.
l The DPSA and the PSC are currently involved in the management and service delivery audits of various departments. We will soon be announcing our findings on these. A series of statutory investigations on departments where we have suspicion or evidence of gross mal-administration and/or corruption will be undertaken as matter of urgency.
l Of critical importance is the need for senior public servants to disclose their financial interest and ensure alignment of the public service legislation with the Public Finance management Act.
THE ABOVE ACTIVITIES SUPPORT THE OBJECTIVES OF: "COMBATTING
CORRUPTION AND ABUSE OF PUBLIC RESOURCES; AND
*IMPROVING MANAGEMENT, FINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND SERVICE
DELIVERY."
Personnel expenditure needs to be contained The Personnel Expenditure Review was conducted after a realisation that we couldn't sustain the current pattern of expenditure of personnel. The rise from 36 % to 51% between 1994 and 1999.
The first draft was presented to cabinet on 2 December 1999 with the key principles being adopted by cabinet.
Reducing the 1.1 million public service is not the only solution to containing personnel expenditure nor is it the only solution to maximising efficiency. The government together with its social partners needs to creatively investigate measures that will enhance efficiency.
The review proposes the reorganisation of government functioning as a key strategy through outsourcing certain non-core functions in order to contain personnel expenditure. This strategy will allow for reducing current expenditure without massive job losses.
Emphasis is (also placed on improving the quality of spending on personnel, hence our focus on performance management and improving human resource management (which clearly has a strong focus on training.)
All departments must submit completed management plans by March 2000, these management plans link strategic plans, budgets, service delivery strategies and personnel requirements.
l We will soon table a final wage policy. Some aspects will be implemented immediately while others will be the subject of collective bargaining.
l Consultations will commence soon with regards to the implementation of the personnel expenditure review, including an appropriate exit strategy. This is what the President referred to when he said that "ADDITIONAL MEASURES WILL THEREFORE BE TAKEN THIS YEAR TO ENSURE THE RIGHTSIZING OF OUR PUBLIC SERVICE".
All the above will be executed with an understanding that we want to put an end to speculation and uncertainty within the public service.
We need to address in particular the irregular working hours (Sunday work, overtime) and leave arrangements to ensure that they are in line with the nature of work in the public service. Tackling the above may necessitate, amongst other things, a Ministerial determination or an exemption to be applied for in terms of the Basic-Conditions of Employment Act.
I hence wish to re-iterate once again " "we have never been in a better position to realise our vision."
Appendix 2: Briefing by Minister of Home Affairs, Mangosuthu Buthelezi Ladies and gentlemen, this year we will be holding the country's second democratic local government elections. Consequently, the question of my Department's readiness to provide eligible voters with bar-coded identity documents in time becomes once more relevant.
The special effort made by my Department in ensuring that all willing and eligible voters are in possession of bar-coded identity documents for the purpose of the 1999 general elections resulted in a significant updating of the Population Register.
As a result of the intensive identity document campaign conducted by my Department, at least 4,8 million bar-coded identity documents were issued to our citizens between November 1998 and May 1999. In view of this, ladies and gentlemen, my Department has since experienced a markedly significant decline in the applications for bar-coded identity documents.
In anticipation of a further last minute rush for acquisition of bar-coded identity documents nearer to the forthcoming local government elections, my Department will once again engage in campaigns where the need arises.
We hereby appeal to members of the public who will be eligible to participate in this year's local government elections to approach Home Affairs offices timeously, to apply for their bar-coded identity documents.
Whereas our green bar-coded identity document was introduced about twelve years ago in terms of the Identification Act 72 of 1986, other forms of identity documents are still regarded as valid for purposes other than the elections.
This situation, ladies and gentlemen, created legal and administrative problems for the Department. I am certain that we can all recall the two cases in this regard that ended up in the Constitutional Court.
It is disconcerting that despite sufficient time given to all South Africans to acquire bar-coded identity documents, certain members of the public are still reluctant to acquire the bar-coded identity document. To address this, it is imperative that there is certainty with regard to the provisions of the Identification Act. Amendments to the Identification Act, 1997 to make provision for the definition of an identity document, and for the abolition of all other forms of identity documents except the green bar-coded identity document, will be made during the present Parliamentary session.
The total South African population is clients of the Department and this literally entails a life-long association - from the issuing of birth certificates to registering deaths. Moreover, departmental decisions and actions profoundly affect the lives of all clients. Legitimacy is afforded to their sojourn within the South African geographical area, enabling them to realise rights and opportunities as South African citizens. The core Home Affairs functions of civic affairs and migration are central to defining and managing the essence of statehood in our country namely affording human content to the South African geographical entity. Migration management focuses on the protection of these rights and opportunities for those who have a legitimate claim to the country's resources. This is a daunting task following from the reality of our porous borders and the asymmetry of economies in the sub-continent.
The current unprecedented flow of foreigners to South Africa requires suitable strategies and systems geared for the proper management of the situation. This necessitated the drafting of the White Paper on International Migration.
As far as Migration is concerned, much has been written in the media about my Department's backlog in dealing with applications for immigration permits and temporary residence permits. During that period my Department was still without a Director-General in office.
As you are aware, Mr Billy Masetlha was re-deployed by the President from Secret Service to assume the position of Director-General in my Department with effect from the 1st of December 1999. I take this opportunity to welcome him to my Department's first Parliamentary media briefing in this capacity. Mr Masethla officially started with the Department on the 8th December 1999 and was introduced by myself to the public on the same date.
On the 1st of December 1999 I held a meeting with the then Acting Director-General, Dr Khulu Mbatha and officials of the Migration Chief Directorate. This meeting was aimed at introducing processes that will alleviate the backlog in the application of various immigration permits.
Following that meeting I have approved the following processes
Firstly, that in terms of section 28[2] of the Aliens Control Act, 1991, I have empowered officials in the rank of Deputy Director and higher in the Department of Home Affairs' offices countrywide to exempt from having an immigration permit, first applicants for immigration permits who would clearly qualify in terms of completeness of the application form, compliance with approved policy and provisions of the Act, as well as first applicants who, at the time of the application, had been married to South Africa citizens or permanent residents for a period of two years or longer and whose applications are duly completed. This process applies to all applications currently in the offices of the Department as well as those received up to 31 January 2000.
Secondly, that all applications for temporary residence permits in terms of section 26 of the Aliens Control Act, 1991 that are evidently complete, acceptable and that qualify in all respects as required by legislation and regulations, received up to and including 31 January 2000 be fast tracked to finalisation. This fast tracking has been delegated to a wider group of officials than is normally the case.
Thirdly, that where, for temporary residence permits, recommendations are required from bodies outside the Department, such applications should be accompanied by the necessary recommendation upon presentation to the Department of Home Affairs, and lastly that officials with experience in migration work be seconded on a temporary basis from regional and district offices to the head office's temporary residence sub-directorate, to assist with working off the current backlog.
These measures, I am convinced, will ensure that the current backlog in immigration permits and temporary residence permits diminish and also prevent the build-up of similar backlogs in the future.
On 2 December 1999 the Constitutional Court passed a judgement to the effect that foreigners involved in lifelong permanent relationships with same sex South African partners, should for the purpose of applying for immigration permits, be treated on the same footing as heterosexual married couples.
My Department is in the process of formulating guidelines that should be followed to effect this Constitutional Court decision. In the meantime, applications received falling in this category will be considered from the end of March 2000 once the guidelines have been finalised and transmitted to all offices of my Department.
Currently visa applications from countries without South African representation are being processed in Pretoria and the processed visas are then posted to the South African host or the applicant. By implication, these visas are not affixed in the applicant's passports by authorised persons.
From 1 April 2000 visa applications will only be processed at South African missions abroad. Applicants who do not have South African Diplomatic or Consular representation in their countries of residence will have to apply at their nearest South African mission as these applications will no longer be processed in the RSA.
Early in 1999 the Cabinet approved the White Paper on International Migration. The draft Bill in this regard has now been finalised and is in my possession.
The following process will henceforth be followed regarding the publication of this draft Bill
On the 7th February 2000 I have authorised the publication of the Bill for comments. The Department will publish this Bill at the end of this week or early next week.
During the period of publication the Department will organise workshops in conjunction with members of the Home Affairs Portfolio Committees and other stakeholders and interested parties to receive comments for my consideration.
It is envisaged to allow this consultation process to run over a six-week period.
After the period of publication, a conference bringing together all those who commented on the draft Bill will be organised. At this conference which I shall address, I will also announce a drafting committee to make amendments to the Bill as recommended by the comments and findings of the conference.
The finalised draft Bill resulting from this conference will thereafter be submitted to the Cabinet followed by tabling in the National Assembly and related processes.
Ladies and gentlemen, I anticipate finalising this process not later than the end of the first half of this year.
The first refugee legislation in South Africa, the Refugees Act, 1998, was passed by Parliament in November 1998. The Regulations for the Act were drafted during the 1 999 and submitted to stakeholders for comment in November 1 999. The Act will be implemented on 1st April 2000.
In accordance with Section 8 of the Act, the following regional offices of my Department in addition to Braamfontein Refugee Reception Centre have been designated as Refugee Reception Offices. These are Regional Office Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth and the District Office Pretoria. In practice, this implies that after implementation of the Act all new applications for asylum will have to be lodged at these offices only and not any other office of Home Affairs.
Status Determination Officers and Refugee Reception Officers are to be transferred from my Department's Head Office to these offices in March 2000 to effect the smooth implementation of this Act. The Cabinet will be approached regarding the financial requirements for implementing the envisaged staffing structure.
On 31st January 2000 I officially launched the Home Affairs National Identification System commonly known as HANIS at a function in Pretoria. Media was present and I am pleased to acknowledge that there was significant interest in this regard. Allow me, ladies and gentlemen, to emphasise that we expect the first HANIS smart card to be issued during the last quarter of 2001. The project consisting of the automation of the Department's manual fingerprint system and the issuing of a new identity card was prodded by a continuing situation of mistrust The present identity document has limited security features and is easily forged, resulting in unscrupulous persons fraudulently obtaining benefits they do not deserve. This practice impacts negatively on key services that the Government is supposed to render to its subjects as undeserving persons cheat and obtain forged identity documents which they in turn, use to claim services. Housing subsidies, health services, welfare grants, to mention but a few, are not always received by genuinely qualifying and properly identifiable individuals.
It was resolved that an Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) would be implemented to replace the manual identification/verification system. For this purpose, the Government did not have the necessary technology and a need arose for external procurement. A comprehensive tender was published on 6 December 1996 for the Home Affairs National Identification System. After a protracted tender process, which endured acute scepticism and severe attacks from various quarters, the tender was eventually awarded to the deserving MARPLESS Telecommunications Technologies consortium. On 8 November 1 999 the Department and the contractor signed a detailed supply contract, drafted by the two parties aided by the State Attorney and guided by the State Tender Board.
The smart card that we are introducing is not confined to the limited identification/verification realms of the Home Affairs strategic engagement only. Rather, it is a magnanimous, multi-applications, government smart identity card with extensive capabilities contained in a chip that boasts enough intelligence to allow other departments and perhaps even other forms of industry permission to utilise the card technology. The HANIS card will serve several government departments and among others, the following departments are co-operating with Home Affairs on the project, the Departments of Welfare, Health, Labour, Transport, Housing and Communications.
The Department requested the South African Law Commission in 1 996 to conduct an investigation into the various marriage systems in the country and to review the existing marriage legislation. The investigation into customary marriages was finalised in 1 998 and following from this investigation the Recognition of Customary Marriages Act, 1 998 was passed by Parliament. The Commission has recently issued a discussion paper on the Review of the Marriages Act, 1961 and stakeholders were requested to comment thereupon by the end of November 1 999. Furthermore, the Commission is also investigating religious law marriages. The goal of these investigations is to enable the Department to bring matrimonial unions into line with both modern demands and the requirements of the Constitution.
The National Government Printing Works in Pretoria appointed an independent consultant who is currently finalising the process of investigation into the feasibility of privatising this institution towards a more effective Printing Works in line with
international trends. My Department will finalise the rationalisation process of the Government Printing Works by the middle of this year for Cabinet consideration.
The Film and Publication Board's annual report will be tabled in Parliament before the end of February 2000. The Board advised me that the Deputy Minister Dr L N Sisulu will host a national conference on child pornography in May 2000, where matters such as the involvement of law enforcement, the judiciary, NGO's, Internet Service Providers and civic groups will be reviewed to assess the progress regarding our aim to curb child pornography on the internet. The Deputy Minister has travelled extensively abroad to study what other countries in the West are doing about Cyberspace child pornography which is a very serious threat to the mores of our society.
In conclusion, I am confident that the support I will receive from my colleague the Deputy Minister, the Director-General and his officials including all of you will assist us to ensure effective service delivery in this new millennium.