Ramaphosa calls for implementation of Public Protector remedial actions

President Cyril Ramaphosa wants all State entities and public officials to support the Office of the Public Protector, as he urges the enforcement of the Public Protector's remedial actions.

Ramaphosa was speaking during the Public Protector SA thirtieth anniversary international conference, where he noted the role of the Public Protector's office in holding the powerful to account.

He described the Office of the Public Protector as the pride of the country's constitutional order over the last 30 years.

However, he noted that budgets mattered revealing that government had been able to direct additional funds to the baseline of the budget of the Public Protector and use funds from the Criminal Asset Recovery Account.

He acknowledged that the Office of the Public Protector, like most public bodies, faced challenges of capacity and resources.

He said the Public Protector gave a voice to the voiceless, noting that the Office had played a vital role in changing the relationship between citizens and the State.

"As a country, we aspire to be a society where government and national institutions treat citizens justly and with compassion, always and in all their affairs. Over 30 years, the Office of the Public Protector has forged a bond with the citizens of this country.

"At the same time, it has forged relationships with institutions across the arms of State and throughout society," he noted.

Ramaphosa said the Office of the Public Protector had sought to promote cooperation and collaboration, understanding that an efficient, effective and ethical State was an aspiration to all.

"It is essential for all organs of State to see the Public Protector as a partner in serving the people of this country," he said.