Macpherson launches digital EPWP portal to oust political gatekeepers

Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson has officially stripped local government of its role in registering applicants for the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP).

The move follows a series of corruption allegations, protests, and systemic failures that have overshadowed the programme’s primary goal of skills development.

Speaking at the launch of a new digital registration platform, Macpherson confirmed that local government involvement will now be kept to a minimum. The transition to a digital system is designed to bypass political gatekeepers and ensure a transparent process for all South Africans.

The intervention comes in the wake of a scathing report by the Auditor-General, which uncovered material irregularities within the eThekwini Municipality.

The report flagged payments to ghost employees, deceased persons, and ineligible beneficiaries. These findings previously forced the ministry to suspend funding to the KwaZulu-Natal metro.

The new digital system aims to prevent such fraud by automating the verification and registration process.

Macpherson highlighted the human cost of the previous recruitment system, citing reports of intimidation and bribery.

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“We also heard stories of pain, we heard from people who said opportunities were reserved for friends, relatives, political allies and people connected to those in power, we heard from people who said that they were asked to pay money before they could even be placed on the list and people who were threatened, intimidated or excluded because they did not belong to the right political structure.”

Under the new protocols, ward councillors will no longer serve as the primary point of contact for applicant registration.

Macpherson emphasised that informal recruitment, often involving little more than writing names on scraps of paper, created an environment ripe for abuse.

“When recruitment is informal by just writing your name on a piece of paper the door opens to abuse and when opportunities are distributed to political gatekeepers, the door closes on ordinary South Africans - that is going to end today.”

He concluded by asserting that the days of "sex for jobs," ghost employees, and political patronage within the programme are now a thing of the past.