Latest news with #DepartmentOfCorrectionalServices
The Herald
02-07-2025
- Politics
- The Herald
Raids reveal scale of gangs and corruption in correctional facilities
Correctional services minister Dr Pieter Groenewald says the department will intensify raids and crack down on corrupt officials as part of efforts to restore discipline and strengthen prisons as secure state assets. Addressing parliament during the department's budget vote in Cape Town on Tuesday, after his first year in the position, Groenewald said unannounced visits and raids were central to exposing the true extent of crime inside facilities. 'Wicked problems can be resolved once we remove the Band-Aid to inspect the wound properly, and we can only address our problems if we recognise their true extent,' he said. Groenewald said in the past year 466 raids were conducted, three in the past week. 'I have also conducted many unannounced visits at facilities. 'Unannounced visits and raids will increase in the year ahead. We are cleaning our correctional facilities and those aiding smuggling know their days are numbered.' Since July 2024, officials confiscated 33,874 cellphones, 20,577 sharpened objects, 232kg of drugs, cash totalling R394,450 and 122,407 items linked to alcohol and other substances. Groenewald said in 2024, 515 correctional officials received final written warnings, 181 were suspended without pay and 146 dismissed for wrongdoing.
Mail & Guardian
01-07-2025
- Business
- Mail & Guardian
Correctional services cuts consultant costs, pushes to build internal capacity
Correctional Services Minister Pieter Groenewald told the parliamentary committee that he would monitor the department's use of consultants and look 'into the amount of money we can save'. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) The department of correctional services is working to significantly reduce its reliance on consultants, using them 'only when necessary' to improve governance and cut irregular expenditure, it said on Tuesday. According to a presentation delivered to parliament's portfolio committee on correctional services, the department's consultant-related spending dropped to R29.2 million in the 2025-26 financial year, down from R119.3 million the previous year. Its historical over-reliance on consultants was driven by governance weaknesses, a shortage of critical skills and the complexity of managing large-scale projects, chief financial officer Lebogang Marumule told committee members. In the past, the department faced recurring issues of non-compliance with procurement prescripts, limited internal capacity and repeated findings from the auditor-general regarding irregular contract splitting. Marumule said that the clearing of irregular expenditure has been 'a very, very tedious exercise with which the department of correctional services has been struggling, with transactions going as far [back] as 2008'. The previous department of correctional services audit committee, he said, had mandated that the management of R6.7 billion in irregular expenditure should be a project undertaken by the department and consultants were sought in this regard. The department had tried to deal with the irregular expenditure itself, 'but we were not successful', he added. The department experienced a massive spike in expenditure in 2020-21 and 2021-22, when the treasury issued an instruction to it, as well as the departments of health and police, that they needed inventory management systems. Correctional services used consultants for this, said Marumule, 'who travelled the whole country'. Expenditure normalised when those contracts came to an end. In 2023-24 and 2024-25 there was another spike, when consultants were used to resolve irregular expenditure investigations and securing contracts. According to the department's annual report for the year ending March 2024, consultants were brought in primarily to support accounting, auditing, engineering and compliance functions. In that report, the department said it was working to reduce its dependence on consultants but acknowledged that internal constraints continued to limit its ability to meet operational requirements without external assistance. Tuesday's report indicated that consultants were engaged to assist in areas such as project management, oversight, translation services and occupational health and safety compliance. Despite repeated findings by the auditor general highlighting concerns around irregular contract practices, the department maintained that the use of consultants remained vital in plugging internal capacity shortfalls. The portfolio committee heard that a sharp increase in consultant spending was recorded in 2021-22, when the department spent R136 million — more than triple the previous year. That figure dropped to R19.4 million in 2022-23 as several contracts ended. But the trend reversed again in 2023-24 and 2024-25, with spending climbing to R61.8 million and R119.3 million, respectively. The department attributed this renewed spike to the advertisement of bids aimed at resolving irregular expenditure investigations and securing compliant contracts. Despite the fluctuations, the 2025-26 forecast reflects a return to cost containment, as several contracts are set to expire by July and August 2025. Highlighting the progress made in reducing its irregular expenditure from R6.7 billion to R788 million, Marumule said that consultants played a role in identifying and rectifying non-compliant financial practices, as well as supporting oversight structures such as the audit and risk committee. The department has since adopted a formal reduction strategy focusing on resource optimisation, capacity development, strategic alignment and skills enhancement. The strategy aims to ensure that external consultants are only used when necessary and that internal staff are equipped with the skills needed for long-term sustainability. Reducing dependence on external consultants by building internal capacity and expertise was now a central goal. But the department also acknowledged that challenges remained, including persistent non-compliance with prescripts, unavailability of contracts and risks of renewed irregular expenditure if internal capacity was not adequately strengthened. Correctional Services Minister Pieter Groenewald told the parliamentary committee that he would monitor the department's use of consultants and look 'into the amount of money we can save'. The department is prioritising internal training and development, while tightening oversight over the procurement of services to ensure alignment with treasury regulations.
News24
12-06-2025
- News24
Angelo Agrizzi in plea negotiations with the State
Former Bosasa COO Angelo Agrizzi has entered into plea negotiations with the State. Agrizzi has been charged with corruption related to the more than R1.8 billion in tenders that Bosasa won from the Department of Correctional Services. He has also been charged in connection with kickbacks that former ANC MP Vincent Smith allegedly received from himself and/or Bosasa. Former Bosasa chief operating officer Angelo Agrizzi is currently in negotiations with the State for a possible plea deal in his fraud and corruption case. The case against Agrizzi came briefly before the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria on Thursday, where it was postponed. Prosecutor Arno Rossouw told the court that the postponement was for further negotiations in terms of Section 105A of the Criminal Procedure Act. This section allows for plea and sentence agreements between the State and an accused before the start of trial. If the agreement is accepted, the accused pleads guilty, and a sentence is suggested to the court. The court, however, is not bound by the agreement. Agrizzi was not in court on Thursday, nor did he appear virtually via a video link, as per a previous court ruling allowing this because of his ill health. Advocate Manny Witz, for Agrizzi, agreed to the postponement, though. The main case against Agrizzi centres around the more than R1.8 billion worth of prison tenders Bosasa and its subsidiaries scooped between 2004 and 2007, News24 previously reported. READ | Bosasa accused want legal and living expenses to be paid from funds frozen by AFU The tenders were for perimeter fencing, CCTV cameras, catering, and training services at prisons in South Africa. Agrizzi was initially charged alongside former correctional services bosses Linda Mti, Patrick Gillingham and Andries van Tonder over allegations that bribes were facilitated to influence the channelling of tenders to Bosasa. His trial was subsequently separated from his co-accused due to delays in proceedings caused by his health. Mti, Gillingham and Van Tonder also appeared in court on Thursday for their case which was postponed to October. Agrizzi has also been charged in connection with kickbacks that former ANC MP Vincent Smith allegedly received from himself and/or Bosasa. His trial has also been separated from that of Smith.
Zawya
11-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Correctional Services Committee Raises Concern About Department's Projected R1.4 Billion Over-Expenditure
The Portfolio Committee on Correctional Services has raised its concerns about the Department of Correctional Services' (DCS) over-expenditure, which is projected to reach R1.4 billion. Yesterday, the committee heard that the department's year-to-date expenditure for the period ending 31 December 2024 is R21,6 billion (78%), while projected annual expenditure is R29,2 billion against the adjusted budget of R27,8 billion, which will result in projected overspending of R1,4 billion. The committee was briefed by the DCS on its second and third quarter performance report for the 2024/25 financial year. The projected overspending is due to a cost-of-living adjustment, effected in April 2024. In addition, the capital budget is underfunded by R222 million, constraining infrastructure upgrades and maintenance. Food costs have also surged, driven not only by inflation and a growing inmate population, but also by the rising number of foreign nationals housed in correctional facilities. The current budget is overspent due to rising municipal tariffs for electricity, water and sanitation, which have escalated above the consumer price index, creating further strain on the already stretched Goods and Services budget. The DCS also indicated that it faces fixed, inflexible costs for public–private partnership facilities, limiting room for reprioritisation. Additionally, the devolution of maintenance responsibilities from the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure to DCS without a corresponding increase in the accommodation charges allocation has left a funding gap of R154 million. The information and technology branch's budget in the DCS is also severely constrained, hampering efforts to modernise digital infrastructure and cybersecurity, the committee was informed. Committee Chairperson Ms Kgomotso Anthea Ramolobeng said: 'Of course, we raised concerns about this trend. It is worrying although the factors for such overspending have been placed before us. We urged the department to tighten its belt, like using for example offender labour wherever possible in order to cut cost and that will result in a transfer of skills.' The committee heard that the DCS has implemented measures to curb projected over-expenditure of its budget vote by appointing a committee that is responsible for monitoring expenditure on a weekly basis. 'We noted these interventions and hope that the corrective measures will bear fruit. We will need a report detailing progress regarding those measures,' emphasised Ms Ramolobeng. The DCS also reported that it has had 29 unnatural deaths in its facilities out of an inmate population of 160 353. Ms Ramolobeng said the committee has on numerous occasions raised concerns about inconsistencies in reporting between the DCS and Judicial Inspectorate for Correctional Services on the number of unnatural deaths. 'Both parties need to sit down and come up with a way forward of how to address this reporting deficit. We want the DCS to submit a report to us following that sit-down meeting,' she said. Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of South Africa: The Parliament.
South China Morning Post
05-06-2025
- General
- South China Morning Post
Oscar Pistorius competes in triathlon 12 years after murdering girlfriend
South African former Paralympic star Oscar Pistorius was spotted competing in a triathlon last weekend in the coastal city of Durban, 12 years after murdering his girlfriend and a year after his release on parole. Advertisement Afrikaans-language news website Netwerk24 on Wednesday reported Pistorius' participation in the Ironman 70.3 competition. Netwerk24 cited an unnamed source as saying that Pistorius had permission from his parole officer to compete. Conrad Dormehl, a lawyer for Pistorius, confirmed to Reuters that Pistorius had participated in the Durban race. Singabakho Nxumalo, spokesperson of South Africa's Department of Correctional Services, said he did not know whether Pistorius had received permission to compete, but would find out and respond to questions sent by Reuters. He said his parole officer would have needed to approve him travelling from where he lives to another district. Pistorius – dubbed 'Blade Runner' for his carbon-fibre prosthetic legs – shot dead 29-year-old model Reeva Steenkamp through a locked bathroom door on Valentine's Day in 2013, in a crime that drew worldwide attention and shocked a nation inured to violence against women. Oscar Pistorius crosses the line to win gold in the men's 400m final at the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Photo: AFP He repeatedly said he mistook Steenkamp for an intruder and launched multiple appeals against his conviction on that basis. Pistorius, now 38, was freed from jail in January 2024 after completing more than half his sentence and is on parole until his sentence expires in 2029.
