PREMIER'S ADDRESS
Master of ceremonies
Director-Generals from the different provinces
Members of cabinet secretariats
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
The historic elections in 1994, apart from marking a major break from our past, also imposed on us enormous challenges of reinventing government.
It was always clear that any new government in our context would have a daunting task of transforming the state and its machinery into an efficient agent for real delivery to all the citizens of our country.
For the past five years we were faced with the enormous task of putting in place a government that would be responsive to the needs of the people. We solemnly dedicated ourselves to meeting the challenges of the ongoing struggle for social transformation.
Everywhere there is a new sense of national pride, unity and patriotism. We have, in the past five years been able to consolidate democratic governance. But much still need to be done. We have only just begun the gigantic task of building a new society out of the ruins of racial oppression and minority rule.
The national government has taken on the challenge of transforming government into an effective and purposeful government that works with the people and learns from them.
Government has undertaken to provide effective leadership ensuring alignment of both policy and implementation.
Ladies and gentlemen we need to put in place structures determined by the needs of the citizens, consuming the minimum of public resources and with an output that ensures the realisation of- government programmes.
For instance we need to transform cabinet structures to ensure that they reflect the priorities of the new period.
We need to modernise our management and operational style, guided by the Batho - Pele dictum.
Most, if not all of us here today are in one way or the other connected to cabinet. But do we know what cabinet really is?
A few years ago someone was overheard saying "I run the cabinet, without knowing what it is meant to be doing". I guess this was the situation with many of us a few years ago and may still be so today.
The role of the cabinet is to shape and oversee the whole of government policy. It is through the Cabinet that the major interests relevant to the whole of government policy are integrated and, where necessary, reconciled.
In playing this role the cabinet has three main functions which it and only it can perform effectively.
These are:
- Giving strategic direction to the government as a whole;
- Ensuring effective decision-making arrangements for the government as a whole; and
- Maintaining the effectiveness and integrity of government systems.
Beyond its specific functions, the Cabinet, as the top decision making body for the Executive sets that standard for policy making at subordinate levels of the system.
A Cabinet will have little credibility in promoting good decision-making further down in the hierarchy if it does not reject policy proposals which are inadequately costed or consulted; which lack sound analysis or factual basis; or which do note promote the primacy of public over partisan interests.
Today and in the next few days as you try and grapple with how best to transform Cabinet and its structures ask yourselves why, despite our best efforts, Cabinet sometimes fails.
The successful performance of Cabinet functions is inhibited by a variety of failings. The list is a long one. It will be familiar to anyone who has worked at, the highest levels of government. The most important items on it include the following:
- Decisions made by the Cabinet are inconsintent with its own strategic-
- Framework and agreed priorities, whether because of pressure of events, crises, unexpected developments, inadequate information, defective policy analysis or any combination of these;
- Important collective decisions are not taken, or taken badly, because of the hold out of power by individual portfolio Ministers;
- Departmental Ministers and officials pursue sectional interests to the detriment of the whole of government objectives;
- There is inadequate co-ordination between departments either in introducing new policies or in implementing existing policies;
- Cabinet decisions are ignored by operating ed in ways not intended;
- Decisions taken by the political leadership are ignored by the civil service;
- Cabinet decisions take inadequate account of other parties (the legislature and public opinion;
- Different parts of the government speak with different voices in public;
The essential first step in correcting these failings is to identify the contributory causes.. The causes will often be multiple. The most common include the following:
- The Cabinet has no agreed strategy or clear order of priorities to provide a framework for individual decisions (including decisions on donor proposals);
- The Cabinet is over-burdened with business;
- The Cabinet agenda is not systematically managed; too many minor issues come to Cabinet while major decisions of concern to government as, a whole are taken in other forums or at lower levels;
- Cabinet decisions are not effectively communicated to be understood by operating units;
- The competence, skills and values of the civil service, and the systems and structures of government, are inadequate or inappropriate for the tasks to be performed;
- Civil service career patterns reinforce sectionalism;
- There is inadequate differentiation between the roles of Ministers and civil servants;
To a large extent the remedies to these and other failings must rest on clarifying responsibilities and relationships. What are or should be the responsibilities of the principal actors and institutions which comprise and support Cabinet?
Is anybody charged with responsibility for specific tasks that are recognised as important: What should be the relationships between the principal actors and their responsibilities? What balance should be struck between objectives of different kinds?
This conference is a critical forum for real deliberations about the tasks which confront us and the practical steps to meet these challenges head-on.
The cabinet secretariat is a vital component of the state and-an indispensable instrument of delivery. Radical transformation of society requires a strong, committed civil society and dynamic, innovative organs of the state.
This conference symbolizes a commitment to the democratisation of the public service.
As you deliberate here ladies and gentlemen you will be confronted by very difficult questions.
- What are the challenges which face us?
- What is their nature.?
- How much have we done to confront them?
These are difficult questions but they must be answered as honestly as possible.
We must display through our work that we are a new public- service committed to serving all the citizens of this country in the most effective and efficient manner.
As managers we have a duty to provide new leadership. Leadership which is sensitive to the needs of those who work in their departments.
The need for equal treatment and respect follow implicitly from the fact of sensitive management. We come in all shades and colours.
We are probably members of different classes of society. But we are commonly bound by a moral and political obligation to serve our people in the best way we possible can.
It is therefore critical that managers create an environment which conducive for a diligent workforce.
In conclusion, this conference has as one of its aims the sharing of best practices of cabinet management systems in order to enhance the operations of the Executive Councils.
This is an enormous task, yet achievable. The critical element of this task is to understand clearly the nature and character of all our priorities.
- Our Business is efficient service
- We have a duty and mandate to serve our people. Let us not fail them.
I wish you well in your deliberations.
Thank You.