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Tomorrow, 19 September, the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) End Cadre Deployment Bill will serve before the National Assembly. The Bill – formally entitled the Public Administration Laws General Amendment Bill (PALGAB) – is designed to replace cadre deployment with merit-based appointments throughout the public sector.

To achieve this aim, the Bill would:

• Make it a criminal offence to interfere in public sector appointment processes;
• Prohibit political office-bearers from employment in the public service;
• Prohibit special service benefits for Directors-General (DGs) and Heads of Department (HODs) who are dismissed from public service;
• Enhance the financial and administrative independence of the Public Service Commission (PSC); and
• Mandate the PSC to enforce merit-based appointments free from political interference.

Any political party that votes against the End Cadre Deployment Bill tomorrow will expose itself as an enabler of the systemic corruption that caused state capture and the collapse of service delivery. There is simply no logical reason why any Member of Parliament would vote against the common-sense provisions of this Bill. The only reason anyone would oppose the Bill’s provisions for merit-based appointments and criminalising cadre deployment, is if they are complicit in this crime against the people of South Africa.

The DA calls on all Members of Parliament who want to rescue South Africa, to vote for the End Cadre Deployment Bill tomorrow by rejecting the ANC majority on the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration’s report. Despite strong public support for the End Cadre Deployment Bill, including from reputable civil society organisations, the committee report irrationally designates the End Cadre Deployment Bill as “undesirable.”

The ANC in the committee wants to reject the Bill despite unanimously noting that the DA proposer of the Bill, Dr Leon Schreiber, “has consistently demonstrated his passion for ensuring capable, ethical professionalization of the public service. This can only be achieved through embracing a meritocratic recruitment system that brings about high-quality staff in the public service with the aim of enhancing performance and provision of quality service delivery.”

Tomorrow, the National Assembly has the opportunity to reject this irrationality by voting in favour of the End Cadre Deployment Bill. As we have consistently done throughout our fight against cadre deployment corruption and for quality service delivery, the DA will tomorrow vote to put the people of South Africa first.

Issued by Dr Leon Schreiber MP - DA Shadow Minister for Public Service and Administration