20250223_publiccomment_centralregister_pari_psam_tei_ec_v114-696c64222f1c9b47.pdf

A public comment submission by the Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI) and partners to the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) regarding the Draft Public Administration Management Regulations for the Central Register (Gazette No. 51963). The document provides recommendations to improve the integrity management of the public service and municipalities by addressing gaps in coverage, recruitment processes, accountability, and the protection of employees against malicious disciplinary actions.

• The current regulations do not apply to public entities due to the limited scope of the Public Administration Management Act (PAMA), which may lead to public entities becoming the 'preferred employer' for individuals dismissed for misconduct. The authors urge the DPSA and Parliament to amend PAMA to include all organs of state and suggest that the DPSA, Department of Cooperative Governance, and Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation encourage public entities to use the register regardless of regulatory coverage.
• To prevent the recruitment of employees currently under investigation for misconduct—whose names would not yet appear on the register—the authors propose that organisations check the register twice: once during shortlisting and again once appointment is confirmed (after probation). They also suggest the register be checked before finalising employee transfers.
• The authors propose making non-compliance with the regulations a punishable offence, with final responsibility resting with the organisation's Accounting Officer. They suggest an escalation process where the Accounting Officer is ordered to submit missing information and is fined if they fail to respond.
• To protect employees from malicious or spurious disciplinary charges, the authors propose that an 'appeal status' be logged against a person's name within 14 days of an appeal notice. If an appeal is successful, the DPSA should be mandated to clear the person's name from the register within 14 days.
• The authors suggest that the central register eventually be made public to allow civil society and media to act as watchdogs, though they recommend a two-year monitoring period first to assess the risk of prejudice to those facing spurious charges. In the interim, they suggest the DPSA publish annual statistics on misconduct cases and appeals by organisation.

APA

Public Affairs Research Institute (n.d.). 20250223_publiccomment_centralregister_pari_psam_tei_ec_v114-696c64222f1c9b47.pdf. https://pari.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/20250223_PublicComment_CentralRegister_PARI_PSAM_TEI_EC_v114.pdf

Chicago

Public Affairs Research Institute. 20250223_publiccomment_centralregister_pari_psam_tei_ec_v114-696c64222f1c9b47.pdf. n.d. https://pari.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/20250223_PublicComment_CentralRegister_PARI_PSAM_TEI_EC_v114.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Public Affairs Research Institute |title=20250223_publiccomment_centralregister_pari_psam_tei_ec_v114-696c64222f1c9b47.pdf |url=https://pari.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/20250223_PublicComment_CentralRegister_PARI_PSAM_TEI_EC_v114.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{publicaffairsresearchinstitutend20250223publiccommentcentralregisterparipsamteiecv114696c64222f1c9b47pdf, author = {{Public Affairs Research Institute}}, title = {{20250223\_publiccomment\_centralregister\_pari\_psam\_tei\_ec\_v114-696c64222f1c9b47.pdf}}, publisher = {Public Affairs Research Institute}, url = {https://pari.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/20250223_PublicComment_CentralRegister_PARI_PSAM_TEI_EC_v114.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }