The Eastern Cape government has been scheduled for an administrative make-over. ANC provincial executive committee (PEC) member Mzoleli Mrara confirmed that a plan has been put into place to restructure the provincial administration.
The ANC-led alliance intends to introduce three new departments, dismantle four others and incorporate two into the Office of the Premier.
The Eastern Cape government has been scheduled for an administrative make-over. ANC provincial executive committee (PEC) member Mzoleli Mrara confirmed that a plan has been put into place to restructure the provincial administration.
The ANC-led alliance intends to introduce three new departments, dismantle four others and incorporate two into the Office of the Premier.
It has been proposed that the Department of Roads and Public Work will merge with the Department of Transport.
The departments of Women, Youth, Disabled and Social Development; Finance and the yet-to-be-established Provincial Planning Commission will now fall under the Office of the Premier, Noxolo Kiviet.
During ANC Deputy-President Kgalema Motlanthe’s service delivery audit last week, a lack of planning and co-ordination was exposed.
The restructuring of provincial departments is said to gear towards a more effective and focused government administration.
The document detailing the restructuring stressed the importance of a Provincial Planning Commissionespecially in a province with severe socio-economic backlogs and challenges.
The Provincial Planning Commission has not yet been set up and Mrara feels this is due to “a tendency to undermine the decisions of the ANC”.
Bobby Stevenson of the Democratic Alliance says that “putting the provincial treasury under the Office
of the Premier makes no sense.
The Eastern Cape as a province has major problems with finance management and needs a stand-alone MEC for Finance.”
He feels that by placing it under the Office of the Premier, which has many responsibilities, will mean that “finance will not get enough attention.”
Max Mhlati of the United Democratic Movement (UDM), says, “The UDM does not support this. We do not see the need to restructure the administration.
“It will not be effective to merge Finance and Provincial Planning Commission. Finance is a transversal department.
They are literally killing the department.” Mbulelo Ntenjwa, Cope MPL says, “Firstly, the reconfiguring will be cumbersome and secondly it would have been better to have got a rationale explaining the purpose to see if it was for service delivery purposes or to help fellow comrades.”
Stevenson agreed stating that it is important that the restructuring is “done for service delivery motives and not for political motives.”
Ntenjwa felt that from the announcement for restructuring “you don’t get a sense of what the ANC hopes to achieve.”
In an article published by the Daily Dispatch it was stated that the restructuring has been planned because “weak alignment” to the “province’s imperatives” limited the capacity of the administration to render improved “responses to priorities”.
The restructure aims to make provincial service delivery more effective. Stevenson, however, stated that “delivery grinds to a halt during restructuring”.
Mhlati felt “they should leave the departments as they are. The leadership should employ qualified officials within the departments.
Nepotism is rife and that is why the departments aren’t performing.” Mhlati says that “the aim [of the restructure]is to kick out current MECs.”
saying, “this is a political move.” A high ranking ANC member stated that “Social Development MEC Nonkosi Mvana and Safety and Liason MEC Ghishma Gloria Barry” are examples of such MECs, “it doesn’t make sense to merge Human Settlements and Safety and Liaison.”
Previous government departments of Agriculture; Economic Development; Education; Health; Housing; Local Government and Traditional Affairs;
Provincial Treasury; Public Works; Transport;
Safety and Liaison; Social Development; Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture are all facing restructuring. The list of restructured departments is as follows:
• Rural Development and Agrarian Reform;
• Economic Development, Environment and Tourism; Education and Training;
• Health;
• Human Settlement, Safety and Liaison;
• Local Government and Traditional Affairs;
• Provincial Planning Commission and Finance;
• Public Works, Roads and Transport;
• Women, Youth, Disabled and Social Development and,
• Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture. Nevertheless, when Grocott’s Mail asked the Media Liaison for
the Office of the Premier, Mncedi Mgwigwi, to comment on the process he said, “Nothing has been pronounced by the cabinet or the premier about any restructuring”.
