Parliamentarians poured cold water over the successes Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola recounted by departments and entities reporting to him when he appeared before the justice and correctional service portfolio committee.
In his opening remarks, Lamola said tremendous progress has been made despite numerous challenges faced by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development over the past four financial years. He said strategic interventions have begun to produce results.
“This is evident by the improved performance. The department achieved overall performance of 86% in the 2022/23 financial year,” Lamola said, adding that the department last achieved 85% performance in 2014/15.
The department managed to secure an elusive unqualified audit opinion during the year under review. Lamola also said the department continued to develop online solutions in phases as part of modernising justice services.
He said the Integrated Justice Service (IJS) programme continued to drive the modernisation of the criminal justice system through the improved use of technology.
Other successes Lamola noted include:
* The NPA's overall performance improved by almost 50% since 2020-21.
* IJS between the SAPS, the NPA, and the Department of Justice enabled the IJS transversal hub to process more than 355 273 cases electronically.
* The Office of the Chief Justice achieved a clean audit for the 2022-23 financial year.
* The Department of Correctional Services obtained unqualified audit opinions for three consecutive financial years.
* The occupancy rate of correctional centres was 143%, a reduction of 15%.
* There was a reduction of 90 escapes in the 2022/23 compared to the 117 in the prior financial year.
* The Centre for Scientific Industry and Research has been commissioned to develop 10 ankle bracelets for electronic monitoring to enhance the supervision of parolees, probationers, and those awaiting trial.
* The CSIR was also commissioned to develop a hand-held mobile biometric device prototype that will automate the comparison of fingerprints of a person brought to a correctional facility for detention from court with the fingerprints on the detention warrant.
While DA MP Janho Engelbrecht commended the department on the biometric device and ankle bracelets, he questioned the planning over the recent remission of prisoners that resulted in prisoners at homeless centres.
“People were dumped on the streets. There was no reintegration programme of any kind,” Engelbrecht said.
His colleague Glynnis Breytenbach said Lamola was painting a picture of a glowing criminal justice system and boasting of improving performance, when his department had adjusted its targets downwards.
Breytenbach said the courts battled with load shedding and were falling apart, with the Supreme Court of Appeal being in a state of disrepair.
“I often wonder if we live in the same country,” Breytenbach said.
ACDP chief whip Steve Swart said they witnessed a number of deficiencies during their oversight visits, and MPs daily received complaints about people not receiving maintenance.
He noted that while there was improvement in financial management in the departments, the auditor-general did not find supporting evidence on the recorded achievements.
Committee chairperson Bulelani Magwanishe said it was not the first time the reliability of information on target performance has been raised by the A-G and the committee.
“What have you done to ensure Parliament can rely on the performance information? The A-G raises it now and again, which means there is little or no improvement in that regard,” Magwanishe said.
Cape Times