Pretoria - Justice and Correctional Services Minister Michael Masutha on Wednesday introduced the newly appointed National Commissioner of Correctional Services Zach Modise to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA).
Minister Masutha said Commissioner Modise’s appointment by Cabinet last week, was part of stabilising the administrative leadership of Correctional Services, alongside the appointment of 16 senior managers since July 2014.
These strategic management appointments included the Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Audit Executive and the Deputy Commissioner for Internal Control and Compliance.
The Minister said as the executing authorities of Correctional Services, they will ensure that the management of the department moves with speed in addressing a series of institutional challenges raised by SCOPA that result in, among other things, audit qualifications.
SCOPA subjected the management of Correctional Services to a tough scrutiny on the contents and contradictions contained in its 2013/14 annual report and flagged, among others, gaps in managing contracts of IT and infrastructure development projects, delays in filling critical vacancies and building the requisite institutional capacity to improve service delivery, weaknesses of internal controls, including the under resourced internal audit committee and the starting and conclusion of investigations on all cases of violations of policy, regulations and procedures to ensure that there are consequences for among others, unauthorised remunerative work outside of the department.
In addition to the general staff shortfall at the Correctional Services Department, the department falls short of filling vacancies left by staff attrition in a given year.
According to the department, only 1482 positions were filled against 3005 positions left by staff in the 2014/15 financial year, a shortfall of over 50%.
Speaking at the end of the SCOPA session, the minister welcomed the scrutiny by SCOPA and undertook to close the gaps flagged.
Minister Masutha said management was instructed to institute drastic measures to fill vacancies, triple numbers of learnership staff recruitment and implement effective consequence management against those violating the policies and regulations of government.
The newly appointed National Commissioner admitted that a lot of work has to be done to take Correctional Services to a new operating pedestal.
He said a special investigating task team with regional representatives will be set up to address the backlogs in investigation of policy and regulation violations.
Minister Masutha said the Executive Authority would work very closely with SCOPA to strengthen the executive and legislative oversight over the functioning of Correctional Services in order to improve governance and service delivery.
The department was instructed to reappear before SCOPA next week with comprehensive and honest responses to a series of questions raised by SCOPA on the 2013/14 annual report and on what has since been done to address problems. – SAnews.gov.za
