Prison food services should be kept in-house - Committee
23 Feb 2012
The Portfolio Committee on Correctional Services has told Correctional Services department (DCS) officials that when the Bosasa contract to provide food in prisons expires, there will be no more outsourcing of the contract of this nature.
After today's briefing by department officials, led by DCS national commissioner Tom Moyane, the Committee accepted that the Bosasa contract be extended until 31 January 2013. The initial contract expired on 31 January 2012.
Committee Chairperson, Mr Vincent Smith said the Committee would ensure that measures were put in place to make sure that food services were not outsourced from 1 February 2013.
"The Committee will monitor the department's readiness to take over the food services in all the eight management areas that are currently outsourced," said Smith.
The management areas that have outsourced their nutrition services to Bosasa are: Waterval, St Albans, Polsmoor, Johannesburg, Pretoria, Modderbee, Krugersdorp and Durban Westville. Each management area has more than one correctional facility.
The department has set up a Steering Committee, headed by the Development and Care chief deputy commissioner Nontsikelelo Jolingana, to ensure that measures are in place.
The steering committee will have to provide a report to the Committee every quarter on the state of readiness. The first report will be handed to the Committee on 6 March 2012.
Mr Smith said the Committee had also urged the department to take a closer look at its supply chain management and contract management units. "The officials who work in these units must be vetted, if not they must be prioritised for vetting.
"We want the department to supply the Committee with the names, and period of employment, of people who work in those units," said Mr Smith, adding that they hoped vetting would minimise the risk of corruption.
Statement issued by Modise Kabeli, Parliament of South Africa, February 23 2012
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