Pretoria - Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe says more work must be done to enhance the oversight mechanism of legislatures around the world.
Speaking at the South African Legislative Sector's International Consultative Forum on Wednesday in Parliament, the Deputy President said this could be achieved by improving coordination and planning between executives and legislatures. This, he said, would help to "harmonise programmes" without undermining parliamentary oversight.
Motlanthe said to date, legislatures around the world have struggled to simultaneously focus on the implementation of laws, service delivery and performance accountability without adequate resources.
"Facing these modern imperatives impels us to build strong foundations upon which dynamic legislative and parliamentary institutions may evolve," said Motlanthe, adding that more was required from the modern legislature.
He said today's legislative representatives needed to go beyond interrogating issues of compliance with financial rules by asking questions about, among others, value for money, especially in the context of developing countries that are constrained by lack of resources.
This would require that executives, legislatures and Auditors-General work more collaboratively.
Motlanthe cited South Africa's model of Performance Monitoring and Evaluation as one that aimed to enhance accountability at the executive level.
"While this mechanism is still in its infant stages, it not only emphasises greater accountability for public resources, but also serves to effect better delivery of services through an outcomes based monitoring and evaluation approach," he said.
This performance monitoring system will enable South Africa to produce performance reports that will further strengthen the quality of oversight by Parliament.
