Customs to 'transform' Gauteng next

Ray Smuts 'SIYAKHA', the South African Revenue Service transformation programme relating to Customs specifically, has been successfully rolled out in Natal and the Cape, soon to be followed by Gauteng. There have been no shocks as the whole Siyakha undertaking, translated as "we are building", has been handled with the utmost transparency, says Fanie Versfeld, who has relinquished his portfolio of Controller of Customs in Cape Town after six years to take up a new Cape-based position as national customs strategy specialist. As such, he will be charged with analysing, developing and making recommendations on customs strategy to Vuso Shabalala, general manager of Customs in Pretoria. Versfeld, the man who raised the ire of freight clerical staff by evicting them from the SARS cash hall for playing cricket (FTW February 2, 2001), is currently working on a project related to implementation of certain excise duties at source which he anticipates will hopefully be introduced toward the end of the year. His successor is Russell Allison, one of whose previous positions within SARS was that of deputy branch manager for Customs at Johannesburg International Airport. Johannes Malgas remains Customs manager at Cape Town International Airport. In Natal, the previous Customs Controller Cecil Gaze has been taken into the national customs management team as a specialist, succeeded by Leonard Radebe. Last week Versfeld told FTW the Cape and Natal had embarked on an aggressive training programme for managers and team leaders with a view to enhancing their efficiency skills, competency and service delivery. "Siyakha holds tremendous promise in terms of efficiency gains for both the customer and ourselves and I personally believe SARS has positioned itself as an organisation whose endeavours are recognised internationally. "The election of our head Pravin Gordhan as chairman of the World Customs Organisation is a feather in our cap showing our contribution in global terms is tangible enough." Versfeld says last year's implementation of the teaming concept of which anti-smuggling forms a part, has been a success in Durban and Cape Town. As far as the latter is concerned, it marked the return of customs to the port on a more or less 24-hour-a-day basis for the first time in about seven years. "We have had good results in Cape Town and the mere presence of these teams has elicited good public response to the extent they are happy to see us back in the port. What is more, the general levels of compliance in the city have increased noticeably."