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Lamola mulls how to deal with income in maintenance cases

MAYIBONGWE MAQHINA mayibongwe.maqhina@inl.co.za

JUSTICE and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola said his department is considering developing a framework to trace the concealment of income and assets gained in the informal economy for use by courts to grant maintenance orders.

Lamola revealed this when he was responding to parliamentary questions from IFP MP Themba Msimang, who asked about the number of maintenance defaulters.

In his response, the minister said there were 16 435 maintenance defaulters that the courts have dealt with between April and July this year.

“Of the 16 435 cases, enforcement orders in the form of emolument attachment orders and warrant of attachment of debts were issued in respect of 2 555 cases,” he said.

Lamola said the number of defaulter’s cases had increased since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. He painted a gloomy figure for the current financial year as the figures were already drawing to half of the 35 000 recorded last year although there were just eight months left before the end of the financial year.

“This may be attributed to job losses as a result of Covid-19 and changes in parties’ personal circumstances.”

Msimang also enquired about the progress made following the announcement by the department earlier this year of its plan to trace maintenance defaulters and potentially ease dependency on social grants. He asked about the obstacles the department encountered in carrying out the plan.

Lamola said the department had found that most defaulters did not want to be found.

When they were located, the minister said, they concealed their means so they could be exonerated from paying maintenance.

“The investigation further revealed that there are two forms of economies in South Africa – formal and informal economies – and as such most defaulters who claimed not to have means to pay for maintenance are within the informal economy.

“The business concerns are not registered for tax and the defaulters do not have bank accounts in their names thus making it difficult for the maintenance courts to process the maintenance cases.”

Lamola said the department has since introduced a maintenance defaulters track-and-trace system, which was initially introduced through the service provider who provided their full names, contact details, property ownership and business ownership.

The minister also said the training on electronic systems and investigation processes had been strengthened.

“So far, maintenance investigators and maintenance officers in the Western Cape, Limpopo and Kwazulu-natal have been trained on track-and-trace systems.

“Such training remains ongoing,” he said.

Officials in the Northern Cape were trained between August and September.

“The department is developing a framework so that the concealment of income and assets gained in the informal economy could be traced for the courts to be able to grant maintenance orders in such cases,” he said.

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2021-10-26T07:00:00.0000000Z

2021-10-26T07:00:00.0000000Z

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