President Cyril Ramaphosa has responded to criticism that he has created a super ministry with tentacles stretching into all corners of the government, saying strong co-ordination from the centre was critical.
The president was responding in the National Assembly on Wednesday to the debate on the presidency’s budget vote during which MPs pointed to the many bodies set up by Ramaphosa within the presidency.
The most recent instance is the transfer of the management of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to the department of planning, monitoring & evaluation to the presidency after the dissolution of the department of public enterprises. The transfer still requires the establishment of a centralised holding company for key SOEs.
Ramaphosa said a dedicated SOE reform unit would be set up in the department of planning, monitoring & evaluation to manage the establishment of the holding company.
He also responded to demands by several MPs that parliament establish a dedicated committee to oversee the presidency, saying his office had “nothing to hide” and was accountable to parliament.
“The role of the presidency is to provide leadership and co-ordination, to ensure that the commitments we make as a government are implemented swiftly and effectively, and to steer the ship of government, working through all its structures, in the right direction,” Ramaphosa said.
The presidency had to ensure that there was intergovernmental co-operation and execution, he said.
“Some in this house have said we are building a ‘super presidency’ that subsumes the role of government departments. On the contrary, the presidency complements and strengthens the work of government as a whole.
“The role of the presidency is to guide planning, co-ordination and oversight, and support for the agenda of government through institutions such as the cabinet office, the project management office and policy and research services.”
Ramaphosa said the value of this approach was evident in the co-ordinating committees the presidency had set up to deal with challenges such as energy and logistics and the entire reform process through initiatives such as Operation Vulindlela.
“At this moment in our history, when we face complex and urgent challenges, strong co-ordination from the centre of government is critical,” he said. “We must therefore think not only of what it will cost for the presidency to play its role effectively, but what value the work of the presidency will have for our economy and our society.”
Ramaphosa said the presidency would continue to nurture strong partnerships with business, labour, civil society and other stakeholders, including through the national dialogue, which would be convened to forge a common vision for SA.
On the oversight of the presidency by parliament, Ramaphosa supported an initiative by MPs to determine the most appropriate way to do this as recommended by the Zondo commission of inquiry into state capture.
He also supported the view that the portfolio committee on planning, monitoring and evaluation, or similar structure, be mandated to scrutinise the budget and spending of the vote on the presidency.
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