Free water, electricity not all – taxpayers also paying R87m more for minister’s private staffers

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s secret amendment to the ministerial handbook, removing the limit on the number of staff members that may be employed in the private offices of ministers, at a cost of at least R87 million more a year, was yesterday described by the Democratic Alliance (DA) as creating “substantial additional space for the employment of ANC cadres”.

Ministerial handbook

Ramaphosa amended the handbook in April to provide free electricity and water to ministers, but this latest move has been heavily slated by DA MP Dr Leon Schreiber for being implemented “without taxpayers or parliament being informed”.

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Serving as shadow minister for public service and administration, Schreiber said the amendment appeared to be “an effort by Ramaphosa to implement the devious plan announced earlier this
year by ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe to make taxpayers pay the salaries of ANC staffers”.

“Mabe’s proposal was that the ANC, which is too bankrupt to pay its own staff members, should find ways to make taxpayers pay their salaries, while they actually continued to work for [the ANC],”
charged Schreiber.

“In the latest version of the handbook, Ramaphosa increased the number of staff members that may be employed by ministers in their personal offices from 11 to 15.

“He created four new positions in each of the 28 ministerial offices – driver/messenger, food aid services, portfolio coordinator and registry clerk.

“Ramaphosa similarly increased the number of employees in the offices of deputy ministers from seven to 10.

READ MORE: Government responds to free water and lights for ministers

“Additionally, the president dramatically increased the salary levels of cadres employed as administrative support staff in ministerial offices, from R850 000 to R1.15 million per year.

“His apparent effort to accommodate staff members the ANC can no longer afford to pay, by expanding the private offices of ministers and deputy ministers will cost South Africans already struggling under the heavy burden of skyrocketing food, electricity and fuel prices.

“In addition to massively inflating the nominal limits on the size of staff components, Ramaphosa created a new loophole whereby ministers can circumvent these limits entirely.”

A new clause says: “Under exceptional circumstances and where additional tasks or projects are assigned to a member, the minister for the public service and administration may, upon request by a relevant executive authority, authorise additional appointments.”

The clause enables “the appointment of an unlimited number of other ANC cadres upon request from his fellow ANC cadres in Cabinet”.

“It is clear that Ramaphosa has completely betrayed the repeated promises he made when he assumed office, to reduce the unbearable burden of wasteful and corrupt spending.

“Through his secret amendments to the handbook, Ramaphosa has become one of the single biggest sources of wasteful and corrupt spending in SA.

“Perhaps most shocking of all is the fact that South Africans would not even have known they are being forced to pay the water and electricity bills of ANC ministers, as well as at least R87 million more every year to employ additional ANC cadres in ministerial offices were it not for the DA.”

Today the DA is expected to announce urgent steps to force Ramaphosa “to scrap these sick perks”

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