Correctional Services National Commissioner, Tom Moyane, has undertaken to heighten interventions aimed at ensuring that the department receives a clean audit report by the 2011/ 12 financial year including the area of asset management.
Commissioner Moyane said this during the presentation of the annual report of the department to the Portfolio Committee on Correctional Services in Parliament - Cape Town today. He said the department is rolling out a four pronged turn-around strategy to address the qualification of correctional services’ qualification on asset management within the next two years.
The strategy includes building of capacity at every level of management by recruiting 496 interns that will focus on strengthening asset management and in particular verification of assets across the management areas, regions and head office of the department. The Portfolio Committee was also informed of a plan to advertise over 300 positions soon to address over 80% vacancy rates in the financial branch of the department.
The department’s 2009/ 10 financial statements received one qualification on movable tangible assets as the Auditor General could not verify and track all assets back to the register amounting to approximately R31 million while other assets were overvalued by R57 million.
Commissioner Moyane said the leadership of the department has “taken a decision to leave nothing to chance” by devolving the department’s capacity to provide internal audit, internal controls and asset management in all six regions of the Department.
The department also gave highlights of its achievements to build on during the financial year that include:
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The efficacy of the department’s anti-corruption capacity was rated as the third best in an audit conducted by the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) that covered 85 government institutions nationally. The capacity ensured that during the year 88.99 conviction rate was achieved in 109 cases of fraud, corruption and maladministration.
- Sustained reduction of escapes which registered 76.8% between 2000/ 01 and 2009/ 10 financial years from 241 to 56 escapes as the department strengthened use of security technology, information security and ethical conduct of officials.
- Reduction of overcrowding by 4% from 42% in 2008-09 to 38% in 2009/ 10 financial year through the implementation of the multi-pronged strategy that includes diversion, strengthening the parole system and increasing of 2880 bed-space for offenders.
- 21 antiretroviral (ARV) treatment sites were up and running leading the provision of ARVs to 7640 by the end of March 2010, as part of the broader strategy for dealing with the HIV and AIDS pandemic.
Responding to a series of questions by members of the Portfolio Committee on correctional services, the department said the financial management of the department was adversely affected by the implementation of various Occupation Specific Dispensations (OSDs) that had not been budgeted for during the 2008/ 09 financial year that resulted in an over expenditure of R483 million. The department instituted serious austerity measures in the 2009/ 10 which helped the department to spend 99% of its allocated R13.6 billion budget, which is within the required standards prescribed by the National Treasury.
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Manelisi Wolela
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