Peter Emanuel Franks

Howard Gruber, a founder member of Psychologists for Social Action, reviewed the dissertation. His review, dated May 7, 1978, as Parkovnick (2015) pints out, "... is worth quoting in full, as it captures the very essence of the dissertation":
“This is an effective dissertation and could become an important book. I began reading it very favorably disposed to it. Then I got more and more riled up, made many hostile notes. By the end I found myself almost won over, certainly illuminated. Francks [Gruber’s spelling] has a style that gets under your skin and stays there. This is a good thing and should not get lost in the process of expansion, rewriting, and editing. It will take some work to make it a persuasive book to a less sympathetic reader, and to reduce its present excessive vulnerability to academic criticism. Its very sweep opens many avenues to criticism, crit. of a kind that detracts the reader and potential reader from the central ideas. But all this can be worked out. As an academic type, I often find myself cringing, wanting things toned down. But by the time I finished, I felt that the direction of the change should be to strengthen the tone of the book, to make its central, disturbing message more apparent, bring it more up front.”  Gruber, H. (1978). Review of A history of American social psychology up to the Second World War by Peter Francks [Gruber’s spelling] for Ablex Publishing Corporation, May 7.

Franks, P.E. (2011)  : Culture and Development in the New South Africa. Johannesburg : Ke Art, Read to Think Series.
Originally:
Franks, P.E (1994) : Culture and development in the new South Africa.  Paper commissioned by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization for the World Commission on Culture and Development Conference.

Contribution to: De Cuellar, Javier Perez and others  (1995) Our Creative Diversity: Report of the World Commission on Culture and Development, Paris: UNESCO.

Franks, P. E. (2015). The Challenge of Service Delivery for Psychology. Paper presented at the 21st Psychological  Society fo South Africa (PsySSA)  Congress, Emperors Palace, Johannesburg, September 16 – 18.

Service delivery is a pressing problem in South Africa circa 2015 as clearly and unambiguously acknowledged by the National Development Plan (NDP) and vociferously underlined by the ongoing and increasingly violent Service Delivery protests and the recent outbursts of Xenophobia.
The Minister of Finance, publicly acknowledged the intractability of the issues confounding Service Delivery and the implementation of our most progressive policies, when he said in his February 2013 Budget Speech to Parliament: “There are also too many people who have a stake in keeping the system the way it is. Our solutions, hitherto, have not matched the size and complexity of the challenge. As much as I want, I cannot simply wave a magic wand to make these problems disappear. This is going to take a special effort from all of us in Government, assisted by people in business and broader society. And it will take time. But we are determined to make progress.”
South Africa faces  a critical moment wherein, if the challenges faced are not confronted at their root,  that is radically, they will continue to undermine the technical efforts to deal with the symptoms and face increasing unrest from dissatisfied citizens.
At the heart of the present confusion is the contradiction between adhering to a constitution and calling for a national democratic revolution at the same time. But this is not the only confusion faced. As Mr. Ben Mthembu, then Chairperson of the Public Service Commission, described as a, “…lack of clarity on what constitutes good practice and what is not acceptable” (2013). As he said: “In African culture we believe in taking care of people who are important to us, by ensuring they are fed and provided with opportunities. We know this has limits, but what are they?  It is important that we have a conversation about how far well intentioned and good-hearted cultural practices should extend in the professional realm and where they must stop”.
Unfortunately, the round table he was addressing in his opening and welcoming speech did not seem, from its final report, to have even discussed this issue.
The 1996 Constitution provides a clear idea of the kind of Public Service management that was envisaged, providing a clear goal for the transformation process:
• Professionalism, impartiality and excellence;
• Accountability and transparency;
• Participatory policy-making;
• Efficiency, effectiveness and equity;
• A developmental and service orientation. Presidential review commission 1998
These goals are admirable in themselves but the implementation, rests with the interpretation. For instance, the framers could never have envisaged the way in which the ‘participatory’ in participatory policy-making could have been stretched by practice in the new South Africa. It was no longer limited to a participatory process to establish legislation for the general good, but a justification for following a particular interpretation of that legislation and undermining management in the process. This situation was further exacerbated by the fact that there was no clear delineation between political and administrative affairs which further confused management with administration. 
Isues of implementation had been raised since the mid 90’s for instance Franks, Glass, Craffort and de Jager (1996)  noted the following issues identified in a survey of the Public Service in Limpopo:
• Confusion of political and administrative purposes.
• Lack of mobilisation of skills, expertise and commitment towards a common  vision:
• Contempt of some public servants for those they are supposed to serve
• Conflict between the perceived demands of tradition and custom versus the demands of modern administration.
• Historical and contemporaneous Favouritism
• Inadequate performance evaluation systems.
• Inadequate supervision and management.
• Inadequate training and development.
This paper will provide a broad analysis of the current crisis of public servicing in South Africa, highlighting the so-called soft issues that have proved so intractable over the past twenty years. It will review some of the initiatives which have attempted to correct some of the issues faced. It will holistically indicate the issues at play and suggest ways in which psychology as a profession can contribute.
Psychology has a role to play in the psycho-social development of South Africa.  We can berate our leaders, but we need to look to our own resources to see what Psychology with its wealth of understanding and skills sets can contribute to the resolution of particularly those so-called ‘soft issues’ which continually undermine the new systems Government ‘implements’ . We have to face the issues at degree zero, not falling into the traps of political correctness, what used to be called ideology, back when critical thinking had more traction.
We need to become more issues focused rather then staying within our disciplines and seeing only what we want to see
This brings us to the question of attitudes and perceptions, clearly in the realm of psychology and the facilitation of a dialogue which does not avoid the key contradictions of a state in which there are many centres of power and that people have to find their way through this maze of conflicting demands. Unless this is sorted out at a structural level, it will continue to undermine our efforts.
One understands the predominance of the clinical psychologies in PSYSSA, as this is the bread and butter of psychology. However the soft issues faced by Government and the country, the intractable issues, require the attention of social scientists of all sorts in a pan disciplinary manner, and especially the psychologists, sociologists etc melding into a confrontation with our complex realites (phenomena unreduced to our favoured correctness) finding appropriate and contextually based solutions

Dealing with the ‘soft’ issues that undermine service delivery at all levels
Prof. Peter E Franks
This paper will provide a broad analysis of the current crisis of public servicing in South Africa, highlighting the so-called soft issues that have proved so intractable over the past twenty years.
The issues of implementation had been raised since the mid 90’s for instance Franks, Glass, Craffort and de Jager (1996).  Numerous new systems were implemented including an attempt to reward excellence which collapsed when as the Minister of Education at the time Naledi Pandor pointed out, that they all evaluate each other as excellent. Performance Management was attempted but also fell foul of the same comraderie among the cadres.
Following the publication of the National Development Plan, the Minister of Finance, publicly acknowledged the intractability of these issues and challenges when he said in his 2013 Budget Speech to Parliament: “There are also too many people who have a stake in keeping the system the way it is. Our solutions, hitherto, have not matched the size and complexity of the challenge. As much as I want, I cannot simply wave a magic wand to make these problems disappear. This is going to take a special effort from all of us in Government, assisted by people in business and broader society. And it will take time. But we are determined to make progress.”
It is a critical moment for South Africa, wherein, if the challenges faced are not confronted at their root, that is radically, they will continue to undermine the technical efforts to deal with the symptoms.  At root are issues of conflicts of interest, and confusion of values. A primary confusion is that of adhering to a constitution and a national democratic revolution at the same time.  Another confusion, is what Mr Ben Mthembu, then Chairperson of the Public Service Commission, described as a, “…lack of clarity on what constitutes good practice and what is not acceptable” (2013). He provides an example:
“In African culture we believe in taking care of people who are important to us, by ensuring they are fed and provided with opportunities.
We know this has limits, but what are they?
It is important that we have a conversation about how far well intentioned and good-hearted cultural practices should extend in the professional realm and where they must stop”.
There are many other, so called soft issues, such as the notion of participation which unless carefully managed can easily be misused and manipulated in the service of partial interests and even corrupt practices.
South Africa needs to face these challenges in all their complexity and be careful not to reduce, basically, political, values, cultural  and social problems to legalistic and technical solutions.

Franks, P.E. (2015) Training Senior Public Servants in South Africa. Journal of Public Administration. Vol. 50, No. 2, June, 234-248.

https://www.academia.edu/9347950/Training_Senior_Public_Servants_in_South_Africa_2014_

https://www.academia.edu/28173547/Training_of_Senior_Public_Servants_in_South_Africa_2013_

https://www.academia.edu/9028842/The_Crisis_of_the_South_African_Public_Service_2014_
&
Franks, P.E. South Africa. In Van Wart, M, Hondeghem, A, & Schwella, E (Eds.) Leadership and Culture: Comparative Models of Top Civil Servant Training, London: Palgrave.Chapter18. South Africa 304,  Peter E. Franks

"Summary:
The Public Service and Administration Portfolio Committee received oral submissions from NEHAWU, Prof Peter Franks in his personal capacity, Open Democracy Advice Centre, Office of the Premier of the Western Cape, Corruption Watch, FEDUSA and Centre for Constitutional Rights............

Mr Peter Franks stated that his concerns with the Bill revolved around the conflicts of interest and their management which was a soft issue and hence was harder to deal with whilst the hard issues could easily be resolved technically. He said that the draft version of the Bill had planned to extend the role of the Public Service Commission and to empower it. However, the current Bill was introducing a new unit which could take time before implementation as setting up new institutions was a lengthy process and was not easy hence could weaken the approach. He also said that the notion of democracy was a problem in the public service as in a constitutional democracy the legislature debated, consulted and made the laws and the public servants were there to interpret the statutes and implement them not to discuss them and decide how to interpret them in terms of the various interests that rose along the way. This could undermine the efforts through different interpretations. Mr Franks had worked in the Limpopo for 20 years and he had watched how different aspects of policy were utilised for self-interest. Thus it was important that the Bill looked carefully at a campaign to assert ethical standards. There was no easy solution, however he emphasised the importance of raising a dialogue within the public service that puts ethics, ethical frameworks and servicing the public above all else. If dialogue, debates and conversations were re-established among all sectors involved in the implementation of the Bill, a way forward could be found."

South Africa, surprisingly, negotiated a peaceful process of regime change from the racial Apartheid to a non-racial, non-sexist democracy. It has become a beacon to the world and Africa, attesting to the viability of negotiated settlements for complex socio-political.....

“The ANC took the reins of Government as a movement of liberation, transforming into a ruling party. The ANC has always maintained that it is a ‘Broad Church’, that is, a 'coalition' of almost all the varieties of ideologies that exist in South Africa: from the National Democratic Revolution incorporating all the varieties of socialism to Neo liberalism and blatant capitalist interests together with of Black Consciousness and Pan Africanism. The ANC even incorporated the remnants of the old Nationalist Party as many dropped their former political alignments in the service of the ANC and their careers. This coalition has all centred round the revolutionary Tripartite Alliance of the ANC, South African Communist Party and the Congress of South African Trade Union.

Many differing ideologies came to the ANC with their own value systems, interests, habits and customs only somewhat tempered by their membership of the ANC. Perhaps they should have heeded the warnings of history. Commenting on  the Elamite victory over Babylon circa 700 B.C., Maspero (1900) wrote, "His [Elam’s] descendants would assuredly have brought Mesopotamia into lasting subjection, had not the feudal organization of their empire tolerated the existence of contemporary local dynasties, the members of which often disputed the supreme authority with the rightful king." (p. 228). The ANC coalition runs the same danger. The ANC has had a difficult time in negotiating the compromises necessary to hold the coalition together and certainly has not been able to keep to a holistic and consistent practice. In the case of the ANC only time will tell whether the centre can hold its complicated coalition together.

Peter E. Franks (2013)

Fragment from an early draft of the paper on training in the South African Public Service which the Belgian editors made me snip because of its, to them, uncomfortable (sic) religious  connotations.

However, now the feudal ‘kingdom’ is breaking up, or is it down.

In the midst of this crisis ridden and globalising world context, exacerbated by an information revolution and increasing opposition from the so-called Third World, South Africa is undergoing a renewal. Is the timing merely coincidence, or are these histories so intertwined that South Africa is, perhaps, one of the pivots around which the whole world is turning? While Apartheid has a history long before the 1948 elections, the institutionalization of it by the Nationalist Government was as much a response to British Imperialism's attempt to integrate (i.e., anglicise) the Afrikaners, as it was to the Swart Gevaar. It is this dimension of the issue that I believe the critique of modern social sciences illuminates. In both cases it is manipulation that is at question. On the one hand the manipulation of people towards democracy based in the idea of an, "integrating system of values". On the other the purposive cultivation of apartheid. Both apartheid and social science attempted to reduce political issues to technical solutions.

Franks, P.E (2000) Myth, The Tragic Flaw: Issues in South African Public Servicing. Paper presented at the International Conference on “Challenges to the Social Sciences in Africa in the Twenty First Century. Faculty of Social Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda, 25th – 27 October and published in the Proceedings. Kampala, Uganda: Makarere University Press.

Home is where the heart is :
Perspectives of migrants and Commuters in South Africa

By
Peter E. Franks
Dean, Faculty of Management Sciences
Professor  of Industrial and Organisational Psychology
University of the North
Republic of South Africa


In the rural areas of South Africa the vast majority of workers are either migrants or commuters. The Northern Transvaal, like other rural regions of South Africa, has many more people who consider it 'home' than reside there all the time. The migrants work in the industries of Gauteng (Johannesburg and environs) but remain committed to their 'homes' sending remittances there. The commuters reside in the villages and townships around the major administrative, and sometimes industrial ,centres of the Northern Transvaal (Pietersburg, Thoyondou, Giyani, Lebowakgomo, Potgietersrust, Nylstroom etc.),and commute to work in these centres.
The Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) says the following about the migrants: "Migrant labour, a consequence of past recruitment policies, will persist in the immediate future". If this simple explanation were true we would not expect to find migrancy where these recruitnment practices did not exist. However we find migrancy to be a somewhat universal phenomenon, sometimes for economic reasons (work seekers), sometimes for political reasons (refugees) and sometimes even environmental (There being something like 15 million refugees from environmental degradation worldwide.).
Simplifications such as those found in this regard in the RDP further disempower the migrant in that they ascribe his/her behaviour to the recruitment policies of the apartheid era rather than recognising the pragmatism of the migrant him or herself. While commuting and migration resulted somewhat from the white by night policies of the Apartheid era and the recruitment systems of the mines etc., at the same time these processes also support the continuity, diversity and development of the local communities i.e., 'home'. Migrancy and commuting need to be recognied as pragmatic strategies for the dynamic development of rural communities in the face of an alienating modernity.This complexity provides the key to the empowerment of these migrants and commuters rather than their disempowerment by either the apartheid systems or the RDP.
Policy planning in the Northern Transvaal, and other largely rural regions, needs to take this complex pattern of migration and commuting and, especially, the needs and wishes they imply, into account. Unfortunately there has been little intensive research into the perceptions of either migrants or rural commuters, except so far as the taxi industry and transportation in general are concerned.

The migrants form a major force for the development of the Northern Region and other rural regions. This vast stock of human resources must be capitalised upon for the reconstruction and development of the region and their contribution to the economy of the region via remittances must be fully encouraged and supported. In addition the migrants provide a vast human resource pool for the industrial and commercial development of the region. Their perceptions require close attention in the formulation of policies aimed at the reconstruction and development of the Northern Transvaal and other rural areas of South Africa and elsewhere.

Towards a Critique of Modern Eurocentric  Psychology

Peter Franks

A proposal for a paper to be presented at:
The Psychology and Societal Transformation Conference
University of the Western Cape January 1994

With South Africa in the throws of transforming itself from an apartheid based society into the best we can make of it, it is optimum that we systematically re-assess the psychology we have inherited from Europe and America in terms of its appropriateness and relevance for the South African context.
The world is clearly in the midst of gigantic changes and consequently so are the human sciences. To the roots of our assumptions (i.e., radical). It is fast being realized that in the realm of assumptions there are no experts, merely interests, perceptions, and perspectives. At the heart of "truth" we find conflicts of interest.
Is it an accident that the demise of apartheid coincides with the present world crisis with its reverberating crisis of the social sciences? I propose, it is not an accident and, further, that South Africa is, perhaps, a pivot around which the world is turning from a modern to a postmodern perspective on the human condition as conflicts of interest are recognised for what they are rather than being shoved under the rug, through positivisms concept of pathology, borrowed from clinical medicine as the search for cultural hegemony by the Multi-national corporations thrust for globalisation. While the dark .avenger, communism, lies dis-credited?
The emerging realities have produced a dialogue able, and I think willing, to accommodate the cultural imperative underlying, though not in any way justifying, the Apartheid ideology, enabling the dismantling of Apartheid. The cultural and other conflicts will remain with the 'new' South Africa and change with it. At present we are in the midst of the collapse of the myth of the saviour state. The Dark Pretender Communism/Socialism and the 'milder' Liberalism/Social Democracy lie in tatters, but with it the friendly totalitarian  dream, despite the American led multi-national attempts at a premature totalisation - globalisation - The reality of the global market nor the emergence of its global war machine cannot be denied, however, neither can the reality of ethnicity, culture and race and the question of ontological security. Something the Americans and the so-called UN forces in Somalia are slowly coming to realise, as is the IMF and World Bank. What is dying is the nation state as the global market takes over the reward systems. People however  believe in themselves and their histories.
In the postmodern worldview conflicts of interests are recognized for what they are and therefore negotiations can ensue. In South Africa 'Baasskap' and 'kragdadigheid' were always visible, sometimes brutally. Power was never hidden. Perhaps this enabled the negotiation process. Negotiation is an open ended process recognizing power relationships, accepting shifting stances, goals and alliances; and it aims at discovering a consensus. It is, perhaps, the only 'model' for a multi- rather than bi-polar universe.However it recognises the social construction of reality at the heart (perhaps it is not a coincidence that Peter Berger was courted by Anglo-American, the ones behind the scenes at Kempton Park and managing the process.)

This paper will trace the development of modern eurocentric psychology from its roots in the liberal social practice of Weimar and the New Deal, through the full  blown social engineering of the fifties, till its demise in the current crisis in Western Civilization In so doing it will analyse the hidden assumption of the modern eurocentric psychology and its social practice via an analysis of the gestalt project from Wertheimer to Lewin and the modern eurocentric psychology.

Franks, P.E (1992): Human & Organizational Resource development for a new South Africa.  Inaugural Address as Senior Professor.  University of the North, Turfloop, November. Published as:
Franks, P.E (1992) : Human and organisational resource development for a new South Africa.  Turfloop : UNIN Press.

Paper presented at the seminar:
Organizational  Communication _A  Top  Priority. Heia  Safari  Ranch, 12 - 13 March, 1992

Published verbatim as:

Franks, P.E (1992) : Organizational communication through effective environmental management.  In Nieumeijer L, (Ed) Organizational Communication a Top priority. Pretoria : Human Sciences Research Council.

Glass, H.G.L and Franks, P.E (1989) : The implications of migrant labour for the development of a post-modern South Africa.  Paper presented to the XXIXth International Congress of the International Institute of Sociology, Rome, Italy, 12 - 16 June.

Shane S and Franks P.E (1988) : Briefing document for the National Black Consumer's Union.  In Franks P.E and Shane S.  An investigation of urban black perceptions of socio-economic needs, black versus non-black business, economic systems, and co-operatives. C/Pers 384, Pretoria : HSRC, pages 31 - 62.

Franks, P.E. (1988) Perception and Misconception in the Workplace: Towards a management beyond Baasskap. enviroscan, Institute of Personnel Management (IPM) Information Services Unit: Briefing Document #2, April.
Based on an earlier version of this paper:
Franks, P.E (1987)  Perception and misconception in the work place.  Invited address, Perceptiology/Persepsiology: Seminar on Perceptions presented by the Public Relations Institute of South Africa (Southern Transvaal), Witwatersrand Technikon, Johannesburg, 29 September.

Franks, P.E (1988) : Favouritism:  a dynamic process in organizational politics.  South Africa Journal of Labour Relations 12 (1), pages 21 - 25.

Franks, P.E (1987) : Favouritism : a dynamic process in organizational politics.  Paper presented to the 5 National Congress of the Psychological Association of South Africa, University of Cape Town, 7 - 9 September.

Franks, P.E (1987) : Perceptual dynamics in South Africa:  a textual analysis of the press coverage during the 1987 election.  In Van Vuuren D.J,  Schlemmer L., Marais H.C and Latakgomo J., (Eds), South African Election 1987.  Hillcrest :  Owen Burgess Publishers, pages 167 - 185.

Franks, P. E. (2016). South African public management desperately needs to confront the psycho-social issues that undermine service delivery. Paper presented at the 15th International Winelands Conference, Stias, Stellenbosch, 30 March to April 1.

Franks, P. E. (2015). The Challenge of Service Delivery for Psychology. Paper presented at the 21st Psychological  Society fo South Africa (PsySSA)  Congress, Emperors Palace, Johannesburg, September 16 – 18.

Service delivery is a pressing problem in South Africa circa 2015 as clearly and unambiguously acknowledged by the National Development Plan (NDP) and vociferously underlined by the ongoing and increasingly violent Service Delivery protests and the recent outbursts of Xenophobia.
The Minister of Finance, publicly acknowledged the intractability of the issues confounding Service Delivery and the implementation of our most progressive policies, when he said in his February 2013 Budget Speech to Parliament: “There are also too many people who have a stake in keeping the system the way it is. Our solutions, hitherto, have not matched the size and complexity of the challenge. As much as I want, I cannot simply wave a magic wand to make these problems disappear. This is going to take a special effort from all of us in Government, assisted by people in business and broader society. And it will take time. But we are determined to make progress.”
South Africa faces  a critical moment wherein, if the challenges faced are not confronted at their root,  that is radically, they will continue to undermine the technical efforts to deal with the symptoms and face increasing unrest from dissatisfied citizens.
At the heart of the present confusion is the contradiction between adhering to a constitution and calling for a national democratic revolution at the same time. But this is not the only confusion faced. As Mr. Ben Mthembu, then Chairperson of the Public Service Commission, described as a, “…lack of clarity on what constitutes good practice and what is not acceptable” (2013). As he said: “In African culture we believe in taking care of people who are important to us, by ensuring they are fed and provided with opportunities. We know this has limits, but what are they?  It is important that we have a conversation about how far well intentioned and good-hearted cultural practices should extend in the professional realm and where they must stop”.
Unfortunately, the round table he was addressing in his opening and welcoming speech did not seem, from its final report, to have even discussed this issue.
The 1996 Constitution provides a clear idea of the kind of Public Service management that was envisaged, providing a clear goal for the transformation process:
• Professionalism, impartiality and excellence;
• Accountability and transparency;
• Participatory policy-making;
• Efficiency, effectiveness and equity;
• A developmental and service orientation. Presidential review commission 1998
These goals are admirable in themselves but the implementation, rests with the interpretation. For instance, the framers could never have envisaged the way in which the ‘participatory’ in participatory policy-making could have been stretched by practice in the new South Africa. It was no longer limited to a participatory process to establish legislation for the general good, but a justification for following a particular interpretation of that legislation and undermining management in the process. This situation was further exacerbated by the fact that there was no clear delineation between political and administrative affairs which further confused management with administration. 
Isues of implementation had been raised since the mid 90’s for instance Franks, Glass, Craffort and de Jager (1996)  noted the following issues identified in a survey of the Public Service in Limpopo:
• Confusion of political and administrative purposes.
• Lack of mobilisation of skills, expertise and commitment towards a common  vision:
• Contempt of some public servants for those they are supposed to serve
• Conflict between the perceived demands of tradition and custom versus the demands of modern administration.
• Historical and contemporaneous Favouritism
• Inadequate performance evaluation systems.
• Inadequate supervision and management.
• Inadequate training and development.
This paper will provide a broad analysis of the current crisis of public servicing in South Africa, highlighting the so-called soft issues that have proved so intractable over the past twenty years. It will review some of the initiatives which have attempted to correct some of the issues faced. It will holistically indicate the issues at play and suggest ways in which psychology as a profession can contribute.
Psychology has a role to play in the psycho-social development of South Africa.  We can berate our leaders, but we need to look to our own resources to see what Psychology with its wealth of understanding and skills sets can contribute to the resolution of particularly those so-called ‘soft issues’ which continually undermine the new systems Government ‘implements’ . We have to face the issues at degree zero, not falling into the traps of political correctness, what used to be called ideology, back when critical thinking had more traction.
We need to become more issues focused rather then staying within our disciplines and seeing only what we want to see
This brings us to the question of attitudes and perceptions, clearly in the realm of psychology and the facilitation of a dialogue which does not avoid the key contradictions of a state in which there are many centres of power and that people have to find their way through this maze of conflicting demands. Unless this is sorted out at a structural level, it will continue to undermine our efforts.
One understands the predominance of the clinical psychologies in PSYSSA, as this is the bread and butter of psychology. However the soft issues faced by Government and the country, the intractable issues, require the attention of social scientists of all sorts in a pan disciplinary manner, and especially the psychologists, sociologists etc melding into a confrontation with our complex realites (phenomena unreduced to our favoured correctness) finding appropriate and contextually based solutions

Prof. Peter E Franks
This paper will provide a broad analysis of the current crisis of public servicing in South Africa, highlighting the so-called soft issues that have proved so intractable over the past twenty years.
The issues of implementation had been raised since the mid 90’s for instance Franks, Glass, Craffort and de Jager (1996).  Numerous new systems were implemented including an attempt to reward excellence which collapsed when as the Minister of Education at the time Naledi Pandor pointed out, that they all evaluate each other as excellent. Performance Management was attempted but also fell foul of the same comraderie among the cadres.
Following the publication of the National Development Plan, the Minister of Finance, publicly acknowledged the intractability of these issues and challenges when he said in his 2013 Budget Speech to Parliament: “There are also too many people who have a stake in keeping the system the way it is. Our solutions, hitherto, have not matched the size and complexity of the challenge. As much as I want, I cannot simply wave a magic wand to make these problems disappear. This is going to take a special effort from all of us in Government, assisted by people in business and broader society. And it will take time. But we are determined to make progress.”
It is a critical moment for South Africa, wherein, if the challenges faced are not confronted at their root, that is radically, they will continue to undermine the technical efforts to deal with the symptoms.  At root are issues of conflicts of interest, and confusion of values. A primary confusion is that of adhering to a constitution and a national democratic revolution at the same time.  Another confusion, is what Mr Ben Mthembu, then Chairperson of the Public Service Commission, described as a, “…lack of clarity on what constitutes good practice and what is not acceptable” (2013). He provides an example:
“In African culture we believe in taking care of people who are important to us, by ensuring they are fed and provided with opportunities.
We know this has limits, but what are they?
It is important that we have a conversation about how far well intentioned and good-hearted cultural practices should extend in the professional realm and where they must stop”.
There are many other, so called soft issues, such as the notion of participation which unless carefully managed can easily be misused and manipulated in the service of partial interests and even corrupt practices.
South Africa needs to face these challenges in all their complexity and be careful not to reduce, basically, political, values, cultural  and social problems to legalistic and technical solutions.

Franks, P.E. (2007) Allowing ideas to cook. Conversation and dialogue: Harnessing a breadth of perspectives, experience and know how. Conference: Making rural Voices Count. DevFTI in partnership with the National Development Agency and the Limpopo Department of Local Government, Edupark 22 -23 November 2007.

Franks, P.E.  (2004) Managing in a rural context: Notes from the frontier.  Invited paper presented at Äfrocentric Management Approaches in South Africa. International Expert Meeting/Workshop jointly organized by the Department of Management and Organisation and the Department of Culture, Organisation and Management, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, 24-25 June, 2004.

Paper presented to the Conference on Local Government : Challenges and Opportunities, Ranch Hotel, 10-13 July, 2001
Hosted By Democracy Development Program in conjunction with the Oliver Tambo Institute of Governance and Policy Studies, University of Venda

Franks, P.E. and Glass, H.G.L (1997)Presentation on the  Perceptions in a Provincial Public Service: A confidential briefing on a survey. The South African Public Management Workshop Gordons Bay, Western Cape, South Africa, January.
A presentation of the Human Relations Climate Survey of the Northern (Limpopo) Province Public Service (1996) which is available for download under the section Submissions to Government below.