Service delivery at masters' offices not up to standard, says deputy minister

Deputy justice and constitutional development minister John Jeffery says operations at the masters' offices in Pretoria and Cape Town are “not satisfactory at all” after legal practitioners raised concerns about service delivery problems and backlogs countrywide.

As a result of the complaints, the ministry says it will conduct unannounced visits until there is improvement in service delivery. The master's office is responsible for, among other things, the administration of liquidations and deceased estates, as well as the registration of trusts.

Jeffery made the remarks on Sunday after conducting oversights visits to the two offices, which are among six in the country.

“Regarding the Pretoria master’s office, the deputy minister did not find the operations satisfactory at all. Though the queues were shorter than in Cape Town, queue management and directing members of the public to the correct sections could be improved.  

“There were also complaints of staff shortages, equipment taking long to be repaired and an insufficient number of printers. It was also difficult to understand the logic behind some of the processes being followed. As with the Cape Town master’s office, there were complaints of emails and phones being unanswered. IT issues were also a challenge,” said department spokesperson Chrispin Phiri.   

Jeffery sought to monitor the functioning of the offices, if legal practitioners and the public were being served timeously and professionally, how long the queues were, whether existing backlogs had decreased and whether there had been improvements in terms of the issuing of Letters of Executorship and Letters of Authority.

Phiri said service delivery was initially negatively affected by Covid-19 and then further exacerbated by a ransomware cyberattack on the department last year.

Jeffery’s visits come after all staff members were expected to have returned to their offices under adjusted level 1 regulations, an improvement in the IT system and overtime pay was approved for all offices in a bid to address backlogs.

After the visits,  Jeffery engaged in ongoing discussions with both the chief master and the director-general of the department in a bid to find solutions.

“The masters' offices are responsible for the administration of liquidations and deceased estates, the registration of trusts and the administration of the Guardian’s Fund. This often means serving the most vulnerable members of our communities, such as the widowed, families who have lost loved ones and children and the elderly in particular.

“These visits are part of our efforts to constantly keep monitoring service delivery at these offices. I will continue with unannounced visits at various masters' offices until we see a very clear improvement in service delivery and strict adherence to the Batho Pele principles,” said Jeffery.

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