Justice Minister Kubayi slams non-delivering contractors, citing accountability and reform

Justice Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi has declared it unacceptable that some contractors have continued to work with the Department of Justice without delivering the services they were hired for.

Speaking at a media briefing about her office’s progress in Pretoria on Saturday, Kubayi stated emphatically that those who fail to deliver will be held accountable.

The minister explained that one of her department’s priorities has been addressing long-standing challenges that have denied some South Africans access to justice.

Among the key challenges, Kubayi highlighted heavy workloads at the Master’s Office, recurring IT system failures that make online services difficult to access and a shortage of staff in the State Attorney's Offices.

She acknowledged that many of these issues persisted due to weak accountability and monitoring systems within the department.

In response, the Minister said measures are being taken to digitise the Master’s Office and work with the private sector to address the failing IT systems.

However, she stated that the most concerning issue is contractors who refuse to be held accountable for non-delivery.

"We found that some contracts were renewed without value added to the department, and some of them were not being held accountable for non-delivery, an example is a contract that ended after five years, which was repeatedly expanded without evaluation of its work," Minister Kubayi said.

She added that some underperforming contractors are now threatening the department with legal action as accountability measures are put in place.

"When new systems are being put in place, they are either threatening to take us to court, or they are even sending threatening [messages about] shutdowns. Others go to the extent of emailing me so that I can interfere with procurement. This is a deep worry."

Kubayi concluded that the department needs urgent reform to address these systemic issues.