Hon Madam Deputy Speaker, hon members, South Africa needs a Public Service that maintains a high standard of professional ethics. The country also needs an integrated Public Service made up of suitably qualified and well-experienced individuals. Azapo also believes that it should be possible for the state as an employer to transfer employees to where the services are most needed. Conditions change and certain sections may shrink or functions be transferred, leading to employees being redundant or additional to the establishments.
Azapo supports the idea that consent of such employees should be sought and hopes that the consent will not be unreasonably withheld. Transferring employees is better than retrenching them. The employer and the unions signed an agreement in the Education Labour Relations Council, ELRC, to facilitate the redeployment of educators who were in excess or additional to the establishment. We hope that the Department of Public Service and Administration has drawn lessons from the education sector on what can go wrong during the implementation process.
There have been many reports of corruption in the awarding of contracts and tenders. One of the reasons for such irregularities has been the fact that some public servants awarded tenders to companies in which they or their relatives had financial interests. Azapo therefore supports the prohibition of public servants from conducting business with the state. We also support the provision that employees should disclose their financial interests and those of their spouses.
One way of professionalising the Public Service is through capacity development and training. Technology changes, and it will be necessary for employees to be involved in continuous professional development. Azapo believes that the state as an employer must contribute towards such training. Prescribing minimum norms and standards will go a long way towards the improvement of the quality of service that citizens receive. But prescribing norms without enforcing them will not help, that is why Azapo supports the establishment of an office of standards and compliance. Azapo supports the Public Administration Management Bill. I thank you. [Applause.]