The crux of public service
With evidence being led at the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture (Zondo Commission), the Minister for the Public Service and Administration, Mr Senzo Mchunu, has received a number of calls and expressions of thoughts, with people showing anxiety over a number of issues being revealed at the Zondo Commission; this statement is not necessarily a response to those, as the conversations are ongoing, the Minister is merely seeking to comment generally on the developments.
One of the factors people are seemingly concerned about is the attachment of allegations to the revelation of names - the citizens of the country are the ultimate recipients of all services rendered by Government in their interest, they do deserve to know – now or later! It is common cause that the principle of “Audi alteram partem” should apply and after all has been said and done, names must be revealed.
Chapter 10 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, provides the basic values and principles which govern public administration, characterised by amongst others, the maintenance and promotion of a high standard of professional ethics, the promotion of the efficient, economic and effective use of resources as well as accountability. The question then begs: “What does it mean to be a public servant?” It needs to be understood from the onset as to what comprises “public service”. Firstly, we have the PUBLIC SERVICE itself – relating to the service rendered to the public in terms of various laws, values and principles such as fairness and transparency. Secondly, is the legitimate Government entrusted with the responsibility to make provision for the rendering of public service to the citizens and lastly, the public service comprises of the public servants who are responsible for the actual rendering of the services to the public. Taking into cognisance these three elements, it therefore stands to reason that very little can indeed be kept secret or classified as “a permanent secret” in the public service – not everything can be kept private!
A criteria exists- in Intelligence Agencies all over the world – SERVICE, is by and large public - over and above the servants themselves! “Members of the Intelligence Services” are public servants, even though the nature of their official duties may categorise part of their work as ‘secret’. It is therefore a moot point that their jobs are ‘secret’, but where the need arises, i.e. where ‘public’ competes with ‘secret’, ‘public’ will take precedence. South Africa has a plethora of legislation which provides for the furnishing of information; the Promotion of Access to Information Act, 2000 (Act No. 2 of 2000) is an example of such legislation. Whether a public servant’s work is public or secret, the reality of the matter is, it is a public good!
By and large, public service is about the public. Government and public servants (elected or appointed) come after the service – which is always at the centre and must be in the public’s interest. In order for our country to truly advance towards good governance, transparency and accountability, its servants who are entrusted to serve the public must always understand that their work is public or, it will be made public for them!
Enquiries:
Ms Kamogelo Mogotsi
Cell: 076 523 0085
E-mail: Kamogelo.Mogotsi@dpsa.gov.za
