Latest news with #Psira
Daily Maverick
6 days ago
- Business
- Daily Maverick
‘We haven't recovered a cent' – private security watchdog says R129m UIF-linked training fund ‘lost'
South Africa's private security watchdog is at the centre of a multimillion-rand matter stemming from 2019, involving 'material irregularities' and the non-delivery of services. Watchdog head Manabela Chauke has told Parliament that not a cent has been recovered. The Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (Psira) has come under fire in Parliament over a 2019 training initiative involving more than R129-million that has led to red flags being raised over 'irregularities'. MPs have also demanded to know why the situation is still dragging on and has not been fully dealt with after six years. One suggested calling for suspensions with immediate effect because the overall situation was hampering young jobseekers. Another proposed that Psira's board be relieved of its duties to make way for fresh faces. The matter involves a nearly R130-million contract linked to the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF), discussed in a police committee meeting on Wednesday, 4 June 2025. Setting the tone of Wednesday's meeting was what happened earlier on social media. Social media sparring Two days before, on 2 June, the police committee chair Ian Cameron took to Facebook. He posted that the committee was set to interrogate Psira 'over deeply concerning allegations involving the misuse of over R144-million in public funds.' Cameron's post continued: 'The money, allocated via the UIF's Labour Activation Programme, was intended to fund digital training for unemployed citizens through a service provider… 'What followed raises red flags… Learners listed in attendance registers have since denied participating. No training certificates have been issued. Facilitators remain unpaid. Tablets budgeted for the project were never delivered.' Psira then hit back. On its X account, Psira said it noted Cameron's Facebook post and had to 'set the record straight'. We've noted recent social media posts by the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Police concerning PSiRA's material irregularity matter. We respect parliamentary oversight, but must set the record straight on key facts and legal process. — IG: PSiRALive (@PSiRALive) June 3, 2025 In a series of tweets, it stated: 'This matter is now under legal and forensic investigation. While Parliament is free to oversee progress, delving into the merits of the case risks violating the separation of powers and prejudicing legal proceedings. 'It is deeply concerning that a presiding Chairperson would publish judgmental statements on an active matter. Public office bearers are expected to uphold fairness and impartiality in all oversight processes. 'We've formally requested that the Chairperson recuse himself from the 04 June 2025 session in the interest of transparency and due process.' Despite Psira's social media posts and stance, Cameron chaired Wednesday's police committee meeting. 'We've recovered nothing yet' Irate MPs spoke out at the hearing. Several figures – some relating to payments Psira had made – were also discussed as the MPs tried to extract more information from the private security watchdog. At one point during the meeting, Makashule Gana of Rise Mzansi asked Psira head Manebela Chauke about how much money it had recovered. Chauke responded: 'We've just said we've appointed a forensic investigation. 'We've come up with a report, out of the report, preliminarily we've issued a letter of demand which has lapsed on the 26th of May… 'So, the answer is we've not yet recovered anything.' Gana pushed him on this point, asking him to confirm if, 'at the moment you have recovered zero.' Chauke replied: 'I'm not sure if my answer is not audible – we have not recovered a cent. We are in the process of recovery.' 'Likely financial loss' and suspensions A Psira presentation on the matter was shown at Wednesday's meeting. It said that in April 2019, Psira had signed a 'funding agreement' with the UIF to 'implement a national training initiative.' Between October 2019 and February 2022, advance payments were made 'to the appointed service provider before actual training begins as agreed and in compliance [with] Treasury regulations.' The presentation said that in March 2023, the Auditor-General of South Africa identified 'a likely financial loss due to non-delivery of services and weak contract oversight'. A few months later, in August 2023, the project resumed and 'the number of trained learners significantly' increased. The presentation said that after several other processes, a forensic report was finalised and submitted to the Auditor-General in March 2025. 'Two officials illegally accessed the forensic investigation report without authorisation,' it said. Both officials were suspended. R129m training contract An Auditor-General presentation was also shown during Wednesday's meeting and provided more details about the April 2019 agreement between Psira and the UIF. It involved the security watchdog acting as an agent and, over six months, providing 'Election Observer and End-User Computing training' for 7,071 preselected individuals on behalf of the UIF. 'The value of the contract was R129,982,657.50,' the Auditor-General's presentation said. Psira also entered into a service-level agreement with a supplier to provide the same training on behalf of the UIF. This covered April to June 2019, a date later extended, and the contract amount was valued at 'R80,062,877.00.' 'Material irregularity' The Auditor-General presentation said: 'During [the] 2021/22 financial year, Psira paid an amount of R15-million to the supplier. 'This payment was not supported by sufficient evidence to enable us to verify the occurrence of the transaction.' In 2023, a follow-up audit was done on the transaction, and it was noted that Psira made follow-up payments to the supplier. An invoice dated May 2019 reflected R2-million, another from October that year showed an amount of nearly R55-million, and an invoice from February 2022 showed R15-million. 'Through [the] audit process, we discovered that the supplier had not yet rendered services equivalent to the payments made,' the Auditor-General presentation said. 'As a result, an amount of R30,182,839.73 was made as an advance payment to the supplier before the services were rendered.' This contravened a Treasury regulation. 'This advance payment resulted in material irregularity,' the Auditor-General presentation said. According to the presentation, a progress report requested in September last year showed that 6,507 learners had been trained. It added: 'Psira terminated the contract with the supplier due to indicators of fraud and misrepresentation. 'Termination took effect from 20 May 2024.' 'Young people disadvantaged' During Wednesday's meeting, MPs were critical. The DA's Dianne Kohler Barnard pointed out that the matter was 'dragging on and on'. Lisa Schickerling, also of the DA, said: 'It cannot take six years to determine wrongdoing. There's something seriously wrong here.' She said the situation was so worrying that the police committee should request that the Psira board be relieved of its duties and a new one put in place 'to ensure that everything in Psira is running smoothly'. Schickerling said: 'We are losing money. The country is losing money. The citizens of this country are paying tax. And we are here to protect that money.' ActionSA's Dereleen James said she understood that the beneficiaries of 'these opportunities'(presumably the training initiative that Psira was involved in, and the focus of Wednesday's meeting) were usually between the ages of 18 and 35 years old. 'How does this affect our communities – what has happened here today?' she asked. 'We cannot just sit and accept that the youth of this country has been disadvantaged because of corruption and because of lack of leadership,' James said. DM
IOL News
23-04-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Security guards urge Psira to focus on rogue firms, not regulations
Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (Psira) has been asked to deal with 'fly-by-night' security firms instead of penalising all companies in the industry. Image: Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (Psira) The Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (Psira) has been asked to deal with 'fly-by-night' security companies instead of regulating and restricting the use of firearms, ammunitions and other weapons for all private security firms. Security guards said the industry is under serious threat from non-compliance by fly-by-night security companies. These companies are also believed to be issuing firearms to untrained employees, which is a serious breach of regulations and criminal offense. In March 2025, Police Minister Senzo Mchunu published a Government Gazette following consultations with Psira. The proposal regulations are currently open for public and stakeholder comment until 25 April 2025. One of the most contentious aspects of the proposals is the new restrictions on the issuing of firearms. The amendments state that security companies that are under investigation would be prohibited from issuing firearms to their security officers. Again, security officers could be barred from carrying firearms in public spaces unless they comply with extensive new requirements, which is believed to prohibit officers from operating in public spaces - including malls, restaurants, schools, hospital and even residential streets. Another provision relates to ammunition limits, requiring firms to issue a reasonable quantity without defining what constitutes a reasonable quantity. The amendments also demand that all armed security officers undergo annual medical, psychometric and psychiatric evaluations at their employer's expense. It also restricts the use of semi-automatic rifles. This would only be permitted to officers providing cash-in-transit services, as well as those guarding critical infrastructure or providing anti-poaching services. Furthermore, several less-lethal tools, including rubber bullets, water cannons and tasers would be prohibited unless firms obtain specific exemptions through a complex application process. The reaction to these proposed amendments has been strong, with criticism coming from the SA Gun Owners Association and the DA, among many others. The DA also launched a nationwide petition to oppose the opposing the amendments. Both the association and the DA said the proposed regulations would effectively destroy the industry. The DA added that these proposals would take weapons away from private security guards and put lives in danger. The party said these also threaten more than 500 000 jobs. In addition, officers said instead of punishing the sector, Psira should deal with the fly-by-night companies, adding that they have not followed the regulations A security officer at Pro Secure services who is stationed in Meyerton, Gauteng, said although he believes these are good measures, but the focus should be on the fly-by-night companies. The officer, who asked to remain anonymous, said the industry is under threat from these illegal security services. 'There are many issues in this industry and the biggest of them all is fly-by-night companies, and that's where the focus should be. These companies operate without proper registration and do not follow the industry regulations. "They hire people who are not trained and give them guns, and this put safety at risk. We don't know of some of these people are criminals,' he said. Xolani Radebe, who refused to share the name of his employer, said these proposals should be directed to fly-by-night companies, adding that legitimate security firms should be exempted. 'Otherwise our lives will also be at risk. Both the public and security guards would be in danger if they cut the use of guns in malls and shopping centres. Who would face an armed criminal without a firearm? And you know those people (criminals) are dangerous and imagine what would happen when they know that we are not armed?' 'These regulations should be directed to fly-by-night because they are the ones who do not follow the regulations and exploit employees,' he said. His colleague, Nkosinathi Mazibuko, added: 'This does not make sense at all. I really don't understand because we are not using firearms to commit crime but to protect the assets. There are many fly-by-night companies and the government is not doing anything about them. These fly-by-night firms are everywhere and people are exploited,' he said. In the statement issued earlier this month, Fidelity Services Group CEO, Wahl Bartman, also criticised the amendments, saying there should be mechanisms targeting non-compliant operators. 'The focus should be on differentiated regulatory mechanisms targeting non-compliant operators, such as increased oversight through targeted audits, compliance monitoring, and sanctions without penalising the broader industry,' he said, adding that bona fide companies such as Fidelity have over the years invested millions in staff training and development which need to be viewed within the current framework. Police Ministry spokesperson Kamogelo Mogotsi said the limitation set out in the draft regulations is based on a number of factors, including public interest and necessity. He said there is no prohibition, but only a justification of the type of weapon used, especially in public areas. 'The overall intention of the regulations is to create a safer and more regulated environment within the private security sector, benefiting both service providers and the communities they protect,' said Mogotsi, adding that the department noted concerns expressed from various organisations and individuals. Prisa spokesperson Bonang Kleinbooi said the regulator is no longer taking questions and interviews on the matter. However, in the statement issued on April 11, the Psira rejected claims that the proposed regulations would impede security firms' operations, saying it seeks to strike a balance—supporting the legitimate operations of the industry while addressing concerns about non-compliance and rogue elements. manyane [email protected]
