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Cape Town – At no point during his reign as head of Statistics South Africa did government ask him to change a number, said outgoing statistician general Pali Lehohla on Tuesday.
Lehohla, who will be leaving his position at midnight, presented the third-quarter labour force survey results at Parliament for the last time after being at the helm of Statistics South Africa for the past 17 years.
During question time, Lehohla was asked if Stats SA has the necessary checks and balances in place to ensure the organisation does not fall prey to state capture.
Fin24 earlier quoted former finance minister Pravin Gordhan and his erstwhile deputy as saying that even Stats SA could become a victim of state capture if its integrity is not protected.
The country could see false statistics regarding the inflation rate in a bid to reinforce specific viewpoints held by those in power. A country in South America, for example, saw its inflation figures and numbers distorted in the past, and this could very well happen in South Africa if there are employees at Stats SA who are part of the state capture project, Gordhan and Jonas said at the time.
Lehohla said on Tuesday he does not expect government to interfere with the country’s statistics going forward.
“We have the law, we have practice and fundamental principles in place (to protect the integrity at Statistics South Africa),” Lehohla said.
“And we are reviewing current laws so that statistics continue to be important in our society. The new statistician general also understands the task at hand – to release numbers impartially.”
Lehohla said although he is leaving office, the entire Stats SA team “remains in place”.
“I was just the conductor, but the team is well grounded, I can reassure you. My successor (Risenga Maluleke) has been working here for a long time. He is his own person and brings his own strengths to the organisation.
“I wish him well when he starts by midnight tonight. For now I still have a lot of power,” Lehohla quipped.
Maluleke has been in Stats SA's employment for 20 years. His career highlights include being appointed manager at Stats SA's Limpopo office in 1997. He is deputy director general for statistical collections and outreach at present.
The latest labour force numbers show that South Africa's unemployment rate has remained stagnant at 27.7% for three consecutive quarters. This is the highest rate of unemployment since 2003.
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