Middelburg – The Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature wants to extend the retirement age of public officials in the province – from 60 to 65 – so that it aligns with the National Assembly and legislatures of other provinces.
This alignment will be achieved through the Service and Administration Law Repeal Bill, 2025, whose public hearing was convened at the Steve Tshwete Local Municipality Chambers last Friday, 05 September.
Community members, stakeholders and officials gathered to provide input on what is expected to be a significant change for the provincial public service.
Chairperson of the Ad Hoc Committee, Fidel Mlombo, explained that the amendment was necessary to correct what he called an “anomaly” in the legislation.
“At the national level and in other provincial legislatures, employees retire at 65. Here in Mpumalanga, retirement was set at 60. To address this inequality, we sought the Speaker’s consent and introduced a motion in the sitting of the legislature. The process involved repealing the existing Act and amending the rules and procedures,” he said.
The Legislature’s legal department was tasked with drafting the Bill, which was published in newspapers for public comment and circulated among stakeholders. Consultations also included legislature staff and private individuals to ensure broader participation.
Mlombo said the committee decided it would be more effective to repeal the entire Act and integrate its provisions into the legislature’s rules and orders. He stressed that the change would improve governance and administration by ensuring equality with other legislatures, while all existing conditions of service would remain intact.
“We engaged state law advisors from the Office of the Premier, as it is the Premier who will ultimately sign the Bill into law. On 03 September 2025, lawyers from the Premier’s Office joined us to provide guidance and will continue working with our legal department to ensure a smooth process,” he said.
The Legislature wants these amendments to be adopted into law as soon as possible. “We aim to finalise the legislation by the end of September so that employees who were due to retire in October, November, or December this year will also benefit,” said Mlombo.
If anyone wants to add their input in shaping the Act, the deadline to do so is 09 September 2025. “Our staff will compile these submissions into a report for review. The report will then be tabled before the Provincial Legislature for adoption as a public document. From there, it will be forwarded to the Premier for signing into law, after which it will be accessible to the public.”
