The Department of Correctional Services has dismissed claims that Minister of Correctional Services Ngconde Balfour interfered in the recruitment of prison warders in the Eastern Cape to secure a place for his nephew.
The department said the allegations came from misinformation spread by members of the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru), who did not understand ”the essence of the recruitment strategy”.
According to media reports, Balfour ordered changes in the shortlist of candidates for positions to ensure that his sister’s son, Phumlani Balfour, was included on the list.
Balfour’s spokesperson, Graham Abrahams, said the minister had no reason to intervene in staff recruitment.
”The cause of Popcru and its members will be better served if they concentrate their efforts on serving their members instead of misleading them and the broader public with unfounded allegations,” he said.
”They know there is no substance to their claims, but they need to create a red herring to deflect attention from their failure to represent the interests of their members.”
Democratic Alliance spokesperson on correctional services James Selfe said if the claims were true, it would mean that Balfour had abused his power.
The DA already has parliamentary questions on the order paper regarding the fairness and regularity of the recruitment process referred to in the reports.
”We will pursue the matter until we have clarity on the minister’s involvement,” Selfe said. — Sapa