CORRECTIONAL SERVICES MINISTER NOSIVIWE MAPISA-NQAKULA'S STATEMENT, AS READ AT A MEDIA BRIEFING HELD IN PRETORIA, JULY 14 2009

1. Ladies and gentlemen of the media thank you for honoring my invitation to this short briefing. I called this interaction with you to get to interact with you after the Budget Vote on 30 June 2009 and to update you on important matters relating to the Department of Correctional Services. There are many things that have happened and I suppose none has preoccupied you more than the notice that I had placed the National Commissioner of Correctional Services and the Acting Chief Financial Officer on precautionary suspension with effect from yesterday, 13 July 2009. I will touch on this matter briefly as part of this interaction.

2. In our meeting with Top Management yesterday (13 July 2009), I was pleased with the feedback I obtained from the Regional Commissioners regarding the implementation of the 7-day establishment. As you would be aware, the implementation of the 7-day establishment has required a re-working of the shift system within the Department. The Regional Commissioners have reported that there is overall good management of these processes save for instances where logistics such as the availability of transport affect some employees. Some centres are not sufficiently staffed to ensure a seamless transition to the 7-day establishment. I have been re-assured, by the management team that all is being done to ensure that the implementation of the 7-day establishment proceeds with as little impediments as possible. I am also looking forward to interacting with labour representatives to ensure that all goes well in this regard. Tomorrow, I shall be visiting the management team in KZN to interact with them as part of the provincial interactions that we initiated with the Deputy Minister when we started in the DCS and we find these interactions extremely valuable in getting to understand the realities on the ground in the Department.

3. As announced in my budget speech, I have been assured that the Correctional Services employees will be receiving the "once off" seven thousand and five hundred rand (R7 500.00) payment tomorrow 15 July 2009. This is in line with the agreement we reached with labour on the roll-out of the OSD.

4. As we grapple with the transformation of the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) we have been seized with the matter of management of overcrowding. An important dimension of this problem is the ability to improve the management of awaiting trial detainees (ATDs) in our facilities. As the Department charged by the Justice Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) cluster with this responsibility, we have made some progress in this regard and the Chief Deputy Commissioner for Corrections, Mr. Teboho Motseki, will provide some details in this regard. I must just say, for now, that there has been an agreement by the Ministers of the JCPS to establish an inter-departmental task team to look into this matter and report back to the relevant Cabinet Committee and Cabinet itself.

5. A lot of work is also going on to improve the management of ATD, including the signing of the Bail protocol - no facilities and properly designed space for ATDs, in some instances

6. According to the statistics available to us, it is safe to presume that if there were no awaiting trial detainees there would be no overcrowding. The number of sentenced offenders can be adequately accommodated in our facilities as planned. I must hasten that there is also a shift in trends that indicates that the profile of persons in custody is shifting and that with increased convictions and an increase in persons serving long sentences we will be forced to consider the matter of adequate facilities for inmates. We have already diverted thousands of offenders through a variety of our programs and we will continue to do this in line with our policies and in consultation with the JCPS cluster departments.

7. Let me now address the matter of the precautionary suspension of the Commissioner and Acting CFO. The general public service regulations make provision for the Minister to suspend the Head of Department. This decision is taken in consultation with the Minister for the Public Service & Administration and is a function delegated to the Minister by the President. In this case, I consulted the Minister for the Public Service & Administration as required. I decided to place the Commissioner and Act. CFO on precautionary suspension in relation to allegations of allegations of misconduct presented to me.  

8. Taking responsibility for political decision does not cover administration: When info came, info I have provide enough compelling reasons for suspensions.  One such reason was the approval granted for rented accommodation at a cost of R60 000 per year while the subsequent costs were about R30 000 per month.  Sometimes people may actually be abusing the Executing Authority's decisions in the manner they interpret the decisions.  I have learnt from my experiences in the Department of Home Affairs that this can be done. There is however no judgement placed on them.  The precautionary suspensions are just meant to allow for appropriate investigations.   I have discussed with the Minister of Public Service and administration and we are giving the process two weeks.  I want things to be normal as possible as a new Minister.  I want the process to be quickly done and if there is nothing wrong, the National Commissioner will return to work.

9. A team will be constituted to deal with this matter as soon as possible and the terms of reference will be finalized and communicated to the affected parties.  I am sure that you can appreciate the importance of not speculating about the details of the charges and/or terms of reference of the team at this point as this may have the unintended effect of undermining the processes and principles of administrative justice. Let me state it categorically here: the suspensions are not a finding or judgment against any of the officials concerned. The reality is that they are suspended so that the process is not seen as unfair or subject to undue influence. I have requested the Minister for the Public Service to assist in ensuring that the team finalizes its investigation within the next two to three weeks.

10. Lastly, I have appointed Ms. Jenny Schreiner as Acting. National Commissioner of Correctional Services until further notice.

11. Minister Mapisa-Nqakula has also criticized the media for taking and publishing pictures of houses located in premises of a National Key Point, when they published houses located at the Pretoria Management Area over the weekend.

Statement issued by Communications, Department of Correctional Services, July 14 2009

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