Imagine paying for garbage to be collected but no one comes to take it away. This is what has been happening in the Dawid Kruiper Local Municipality, in the Northern Cape, according to investigations from the Public Protector Advocate Kholeka Gcaleka, who recently published her final report of cases and resolutions found for the third quarter of the 2024/2025 financial year.
According to the Public Protector, the South African government has consistently failed a large number of people it serves with over 1400 cases dealt with in the third quarter of 2024. The Public Protector did confirm though that the majority of these cases have been resolved.
PUBLIC PROTECTOR FINDS THE RIGHT BENEFICIARY
One of the cases the Public Protector noted was the instance where the government paid benefits to the wrong person. The report recorded that the Department of Correctional Services paid the benefits of a female employee who passed away in their service to her niece instead of the husband of the deceased, even though he was her rightful heir.
The report found: “Having regard to the evidence and the regulatory framework determining the standard that should have been complied with by the functionaries of the Department, the Public Protector found that the allegation that the functionaries of the Department irregularly paid the employment benefits accrued to the Complainant’s deceased wife to her niece, to the exclusion of the Complainant, the surviving spouse, is substantiated.”
As such, the Public Protector instructed the department to pay the husband the money owed to him, and to train their staff to avoid similar mistakes in the future.
INCORRECT REGISTRATION
In another case, it was found that the people in Thaba Nchu, Free State faced years of frustration because the government incorrectly registered their land under someone else’s name.
Despite their repeated attempts to fix the mistakes, government departments like the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) and the local municipality failed to act.
As a result of this, residents were not able to prove ownership of their homes, creating stress and uncertainty.
In this matter, the Public Protector found that the allegation that functionaries of the Municipality and the DPWI unduly delayed rectifying the incorrect registration.
The Public Protector instructed the Premier to issue a public apology to all beneficiaries in Thaba Nchu, who have suffered prejudice as a result of the improper conduct by the functionaries of the DPWI and the Municipality for the undue delay in rectifying the wrongful registration of properties in Thaba Nchu.
SAME THEMES OF UNFAIRNESS STILL PERSIST
The Public Protector noted that the same themes of unfairness that have plagued the SA government stubbornly persist. These include ignored complaints( people often wait years for help after reporting problems to government offices); delays in action (even simple issues like correcting a document can take decades); failure to provide basic services ( from water and sanitation to education, government departments fail to meet people’s needs despite collecting payments or taxes) and lack of accountability.
The Public Protector has issued a call for the government to treat people with fairness, deliver services efficiently, and uphold the Constitution.
SHOULD THERE BE GREATER CONSEQUENCES FOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS WHO FAIL IN THEIR DUTY?
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