Chair, Minister, hon members, ladies and gentlemen, I rise to support the Budget Vote for the Department of Public Service and Administration from the point of view of its transformation programme and its commitment to acceleration of service delivery. However, we in the IFP are not satisfied with the manner in which other programmes of the department are handled.
Firstly, the re-skilling of employable graduates treats the symptoms and not the route problem. Having worked at the University of South Africa for many years, I recall that on an occasion we were approached by bankers to develop courses that would answer to their needs, and we developed a Bachelor of Commerce Degree in Banking. Again, we were approached by Estate Agencies with their needs and a tailor-made BComm Degree in Real Estate was developed, to site just two examples.
This is a proactive way of eliminating unemployable graduates and DPSA could do the same, whilst Public Administration Leadership and Management Academy continues to re-skill other civil servants, especially on attitudinal behaviour, based on the principles of Ubuntu. While the training in correct attitudes is commended by the IFP as it addresses negative and hostile attitudes often displayed by public servants to their clients we would demand that the DPSA rather focuse on corruption as a priority.
The IFP's point of departure is clean governance, for instance, reports that over R600 million, which was earmarked for tenders to the general public ended up in the pockets of friends and relatives of the Public Service's officials, are absolutely unacceptable. Reports by the Auditor- General that in his recent investigation, more than 2 000 civil servants were found to be involved in tender rigging, is abominable. The DPSA does assure taxpayers that they discipline offending officials but the manner of such discipline leaves a lot to be desired. In KwaZulu-Natal, where I come from officials who are found guilty of corruption are either transferred to other departments where they continue happily with their corrupt tendencies or sit around the table with their employer to negotiate sumptuous severance packages for themselves. It must be borne in mind that justice must not only be done, but must be seen to be done.
The manner in which the government deals with corrupt officials is not at all reassuring. In fact, the general public outside the ruling party did not interpret government's disbanding of the Scorpions as a serious attempt to deal with crime and corruption in this country.
Furthermore and finally, we reject the DPSA's efforts to create a single public service, and the argument that this will enhance service delivery. On the contrary, this will create an over-bloated and cumbersome civil service where the focus will fall on compliance with bureaucratic challenges of the system at the expense of accelerated service delivery. In fact, we see it as a centrist ploy by government to further amass all power in Pretoria, thus undermining the provinces and municipalities in spite of the fact that their distinctive character and autonomy is entrenched in the Constitution. Thank you. [Applause.]