Presidency to improve public access to Government Information
22 August 2015
President Jacob Zuma is to lead government in improving public access to information about the work of government through more regular briefings to the media and by formalising relations with the media and the communication sector.
The Presidency has already begun to organise regular media briefings by President Zuma. The intention is improve the dissemination of information to the public so that people can be better informed about the work of government and be able to engage on the programme of action.
A briefing was held by the President recently to provide an update on the implementation of commitments made in the State of the Nation Address (SoNA). A specific briefing was also held on Operation Phakisa which is a National Development Plan fast results delivery plan focusing on the ocean economy, health, education and mining. More briefings are being planned on other aspects of the programme of action such as local government, international relations, infrastructure development and the ongoing implementation of the Farlam Commission of Inquiry recommendations and others as the year progresses.
“We have a duty to inform the public about what government is doing to change their lives so that they can also advise us where there is a need for improvement. Government tends to assume that people know automatically but they cannot know until government goes all out to inform them directly and through the media. We will now no longer wait the whole year before giving feedback on the State of the Nation Address implementation as well. The one hour of the SoNA does not allow enough time to fully brief the public. We want to institutionalise and promote communication within government, and the Presidency must lead from the front’’, said President Zuma.
The President already holds regular direct engagements with the public through the Presidential Imbizo programme and the Presidential Siyahlola Monitoring Programme. The Imbizo enables direct communication to hear the views of a community about development in their area. The Siyahlola programme is part of the President’s monitoring and evaluation programme to assess progress made by government in delivering services to the community. Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa runs the Anti-poverty programme which entails visiting communities to assess the impact of anti-poverty programmes.
This year, Siyahlola visits were undertaken to assess public transport in Mamelodi and to check progress on the operationalization of the Are Yeng Bus service in the Pretoria city centre. Another Siyahlola visit was undertaken to Tshwane University of Technology in June to assess support provided to students and to promote youth development. An imbizo also took place with older persons in Eersterus earlier this year and a return visit to Eersterus took place yesterday on Friday 21 August focusing on the fight against drugs and substance abuse.
The Presidency also requires government departments to send their programmes on work they are doing to promote interaction with the public during critical months in the national calendar such as Youth Month, Women’s Month, Heritage Month and others. Ministers and Deputy Ministers also organise public engagement programmes to address communities as part of information dissemination. The regular media engagement plan will augment the critical direct interface with the public.
In addition to the media, the Presidency also engages stakeholders through Presidential Working Groups focusing on interface with business, labour, the faith-based community, disabled persons, youth and also the media and communications sector. The Presidential Media and Communication Working Group and the Presidential Working Group on Disability Issues are to be launched for the first time this year. There is also a special focus on the mining sector following the Marikana tragedy, in the form of the Mining Sector National Consultative Forum which is chaired by the President, bringing together government, business and labour. The next meeting will take place on 8 September 2015.
The Presidency also announced to journalists attending the State of the Nation Address mid-year briefing that the Presidential Press Corps (PCC) would be operationalized. The PPC will be constituted by journalists who cover the Presidency to ensure improved interaction with journalists assigned to cover the Presidency as it happens in other countries. This will ensure that they become specialists and have access to information they need at all times from the Presidency. It will also create a formal channel of communication between the Presidency and journalists covering the institution.
The Presidency will soon convene a meeting with political editors, political correspondents and reporters to discuss the establishment of the PPC. The Presidency has also written to the South African National Editors Forum (SANEF) for comments and inputs on the PPC. SANEF had raised a concern last month when some journalists said they had been left out of the media visit to the residence of President Zuma in Nkandla and the consultation is aimed at ensuring that we work together going forward in matters affecting working journalists.
Statement issued by Bongani Majola, The Presidency, August 22 2015
