Budget vote media statement by Minister Jeff Radebe, MP, Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Imbizo Centre, Parliament
29 May 2013
Deputy Minister
Director-General
Dr. Khotso De Wee
Adv. J B Skosana
Members of the media
Good morning to you all.
Today, I will deliver my fifth budget vote in the portfolio of Justice and Constitutional Development to the National Assembly.
It is my pleasure to outline some of the key areas that I will focus on during the speech later today.
Today's budget vote policy statement reaffirms our commitment to protect and promote the right to freedom and security of all persons, to uphold and defend the rule of law in our quest to ensure that all in South Africa are and feel safe. As we move towards the 20th mark of our constitutional democracy, our department continues to work towards a just and equal society, as envisaged in the Constitution.
Legislation enacted since 1994 and its benefits
One of our key transformative tools towards a just and equal society has been the development of legislation that not only safeguards our democracy but also strengthens a rights culture in our society. During the past 19 years, Parliament has enacted 1294 laws (Acts of Parliament) while the magnitude of policies adopted and implemented by the Executive is beyond imagination.
The laws that emanate from our esteemed Parliament, policies and programmes of our industrious Executive and the jurisprudence that emanates from the wisdom of our independent judiciary have not only shaped our past 19 years, but have also put the country on course to the full realisation and enjoyment of the fruits of our democracy.
Of the 1294 Acts passed by Parliament since 1994, 148 are attributed to the Justice sector.
Contrary to the widely spread belief that this administration is acting against the Constitution, it is important to note that since 1994, the Constitutional Court has declared only 17 provisions of different Acts of Parliament unconstitutional. This translates to less than 2% of all legislation passed since 1994.
The assessment of the impact of the decisions of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court of Appeal, which I announced when I presented the budget of the department in 2012, is on course. It is anticipated that a preliminary report of the assessment to be completed by 31 March 2014.
Strengthening the independence of the Judiciary
The Government has introduced radical reforms which are aimed at strengthening the Judiciary as a separate Branch of the state. The Constitution Seventeenth Amendment Act, which the President assented into law in February this year, has broken new ground in our judicial landscape. These amendments, firstly; confer on the Chief Justice, the power to lead and guide the judiciary, as the first among equals; secondly, they extend the powers of the Constitutional Court to hear any matter that raises an arguable point of law of general public interest.
The independence and impartiality of the judiciary has been bolstered by the establishment of the Office of the Chief Justice as a separate institution from the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development. The Superior Courts Bill, which was promoted together with the Constitution Seventeenth Amendment Act, accords the Office of the Chief Justice its separate identity and responsibility. We are pleased that Parliament has passed this Bill and will soon come into operation as soon as it is signed into law by the President.
Transformation of the judiciary (Gender and racial representation)
Ladies and gentlemen, transformation of the judiciary is a Constitutional imperative which we must endeavor to fulfil. Out of total 311 judges appointed since 1994, 88 are White males compared to 76 women judges. Currently, black judges constitute 61% of all judges. However, the strides we have made regarding the appointment judges of colour are negated by the acute under-representation of women on the bench. Of the judicial establishment of 239 judges only 76 are women. We will continue to implement innovative ways of empowering women to challenge for seats in our judicial benches and other critical positions in the justice sector. As a department, we have taken bold steps to increase the allocation of briefs to competent Previously Disadvantaged Individuals from last year's target of 65% to 70% this current financial year.
Court efficiency
We are confident that the transformation of the judiciary and legal sector as a whole will greatly improve the efficiency of our courts and broaden access to justice. Together with the office of the Chief Justice Mogoeng, we continue to make significant interventions to optimise court performance. A national Case Flow Management (CFM) Committee has been established which monitors the Provincial Integrated Case Flow Management structures to adherence to the performance targets set for the courts locally.
The Backlog courts have also had a significant impact on the performance of our courts. In total the Regional and District backlog criminal courts have dealt with 82 271 cases since their establishment on 1 November 2006 until 31 March 2013. Of the above cases, 57 668 cases have been finalised, 21 932 cases withdrawn and 2 671 cases transferred to the High Courts.
The fight against corruption and fraud
Ladies and gentlemen, the fight against corruption remains a priority for government. Not only does corruption erode the fruits of our hard-earned democracy, but it also tarnishes our good name locally and internationally and discourages foreign investment. Significant progress is being registered to ensure that culprits are apprehended and made to face the mighty of the law. The SIU currently has 25 active proclamations, ten (10) arising from national government incidents, seven (7) from provincial government incidents, six (6) from local government incidents and two (2) from state-owned enterprises.
Investigations in relation to seven proclamations were finalised in the 2012/13 financial year. Another 15 are envisaged for finalisation in the 2013/14 financial year and 10 in the 2014/15 financial year. These include the investigation of 481 incidents of serious corruption which were recorded for the 2012/13 financial year and more than 758 persons are currently under criminal, financial and/or forensic investigation. The Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) completed forfeiture of 302 cases for the past financial year with a value of R118,4 million.
The success rate of the AFU in this period was 94.1% (289 cases). In addition 276 new freezing orders were obtained for the past financial year to the value of R518 million.
Earlier this year when I outlined our plan for the 2013/14 financial year to the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development, I undertook to release the names of persons convicted of serious acts of corruption. The names of 33 convicts will be released on 9 June 2013.
The fight against gender based violence
The efficiency of the justice system will also assist in dealing with gender based violence. We have considered the need to identify courts which will be dedicated for the hearing of sexual offences and other forms of gender-based crimes. A total of 57 regional courts across all provinces have been identified for designation as sexual offences courts. A separate budget has been set aside in our 2013 MTEF allocation to increase the capacity of these courts and regional courts generally.
Access to justice
Infrastructure development
Yesterday I officially opened the Ntuzuma Magistrates Court, which elevated the scale to 43 new courts built since 1994. We are excited to report that the Limpopo High court is scheduled for completion by June 2013 while the construction of the Mpumalanga High Court is expected to commence in July this year. There are also 6 new courts planned for construction in the next 5 years. All these capital projects, mainly targeted at previously underserviced areas, will assist in breaking the barriers experienced by majority of the people as they attempt to access to justice.
Closely linked to our capital works programme is the project on the re-demarcation of magisterial districts. Through this project we seek to redress past racially-based demarcations of our courts. As part of this project were have upgraded and equipped 24 Branch Courts in the rural villages and traditionally Black townships. The outstanding 65 Branch Courts are also earmarked for upgrade gradually in line with the Vision 2030 of our National Development Plan.
Small Claims Courts
We are on our course to establish a Small Claims Court in all our 387 magisterial districts. To date, we have established 268 small claims courts countrywide. In Gauteng we have established Small claims Courts in all magisterial districts. Mpumalanga is the next province to have a full coverage of small Claims Court in each magisterial district.
Legal Aid
The Legal Aid South Africa has a fully functional national call centre where clients can access telephonic legal advice daily from 7am to 7pm. The call centre, which is accessed through a toll free number, ensures that even in rural areas, clients are also able to access legal advice. During the past 2012/13 financial year, 297,835 general advice consultations were rendered, of which 44,247 new advice matters were logged by the call centre.
Service delivery improvements
Maintenance
Several initiatives are also being conceptualised and implemented to improve services in all justice service points. We have developed a turnaround strategy to improve the maintenance system and ensure that rightful beneficiaries receive their monies in time. In order to cope with the increasing volume of maintenance applications, which amounts to 200 000 annually, we are in a process of decentralising the payments of beneficiaries. We have introduced the Electronic Fund Transfer system at 319 magistrate's courts to ensure efficiency in the payment beneficiaries.
Master of High Court
Through the Guardian Fund the department contributes substantially to poverty alleviation and economic vulnerability. In 2012/13 we made 37 000 payments totalling R1, 006 billion to guardian fund beneficiaries. The department introduced in November 2010 an electronic payment system which reaches 92, 88% of beneficiaries and reduces the turnaround time.
TRC
As part of the implementation of the TRC recommendations, reparations continue to be paid out of the President's Fund. This brings the total number of beneficiaries paid to date to 16721 and the number of beneficiaries remaining to be paid to 111. This is an improvement compared to 28 March 2013, when the total number of beneficiaries remaining to be paid totaled 133.
Budget allocation
We continue to strengthen financial management to ensure that the budget voted to us by parliament in used in the enhancing access to justice for all. In this regard, we welcome the total budget of R16,7 billion that has been allocated to the department for the 2013/14 financial year. Of this budget allocation R5,8 billion is allocated to the Court Services programme, R3 billion is for the NPA and R1,84 billion for Public Entities and Chapter 9 Institutions. I will give more details of the budget breakdown during the delivery of my budget speech later on.
Conclusion
Ladies and gentlemen, In conclusion, we remain aware that justice is an important pillar of democracy as it creates an enabling environment for citizens to enjoy their rights and freedom. We would therefore ensure that every cent entrusted to us is used in building an accessible equitable and transformed justice system.
I thank you.
Issued by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, May 29 2013
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