Submission on the draft Public Service Regulations (GG No. 48104 dated 24 February 2023)

This submission, prepared by the Action for Accountability (A4A) project and the Public Affairs Research Institute (PARI), provides comments and recommendations on the draft Public Service Regulations (GG No. 48104 dated 24 February 2023) which seek to amend the 2016 Public Service Regulations. The authors argue that South Africa is facing an "accountability crisis" and suggest various amendments to ensure the regulations align with the National Framework towards the Implementation of Professionalisation of the Public Sector and the National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS).

• The authors strongly oppose the proposed withdrawal of clause 13(c) of the 2016 Regulations, which prohibits public servants from conducting business with any organ of state or serving as a director of a company that does so. They argue this withdrawal contradicts previous statements from the Deputy Minister of the DPSA and conflicts with section 8 of the Public Administration Management Act (PAMA), which criminalizes such actions.
• The submission recommends several enhancements to reporting and transparency to combat corruption and improve oversight. These include: retaining regulation 21(2)(d) regarding annual reporting by Heads of Department; requiring the Minister to produce an annual report for Parliament on compliance with regulations 21(1) and 21(2)(d); and requiring the publication of organisational structures, approved establishments, and Human Resource Plans on departmental websites within 30 days of approval.
• The authors propose stricter penalties for misconduct and tighter controls on overtime. Specifically, they suggest that the period of prohibition from re-employment for dismissed employees should be 10 years for misconduct listed under items 1 to 9 of the relevant table, and 5 years for all other acts of misconduct. They also express concern that proposed amendments to Regulation 49 regarding overtime beyond 30% of monthly salary are too broadly framed and could be subject to abuse.

APA

Public Affairs Research Institute (2023). Submission on the draft Public Service Regulations (GG No. 48104 dated 24 February 2023). https://pari.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Submission-to-DPSA-iro-draft-Public-Service-Regulations-dd-19-April-20237165.pdf

Chicago

Public Affairs Research Institute. Submission on the draft Public Service Regulations (GG No. 48104 dated 24 February 2023). 2023. https://pari.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Submission-to-DPSA-iro-draft-Public-Service-Regulations-dd-19-April-20237165.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Public Affairs Research Institute |title=Submission on the draft Public Service Regulations (GG No. 48104 dated 24 February 2023) |date=19 April 2023 |url=https://pari.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Submission-to-DPSA-iro-draft-Public-Service-Regulations-dd-19-April-20237165.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{publicaffairsresearchinstitute2023submission, author = {{Public Affairs Research Institute}}, title = {{Submission on the draft Public Service Regulations (GG No. 48104 dated 24 February 2023)}}, publisher = {Public Affairs Research Institute}, year = {2023}, month = apr, url = {https://pari.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Submission-to-DPSA-iro-draft-Public-Service-Regulations-dd-19-April-20237165.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }