Given the ways in which poorly performing state-owned entities have been looted for financial gain, top government official remuneration raises serious questions about whether these salaries can be justified.

In what may be the best-paid job in the South African public sector, Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) CEO Makhosini Msibi received remuneration of almost R9.3-million in the 2020/21 financial year. This is far higher than the annual salary of the President (just more than R3-million), the Chief Justice (about R2.9-million) or a provincial premier (about R2.3-million).

At a time when the Zondo Commission is making damning findings about the ways in which poorly performing state-owned entities (SOEs) have been looted in South Africa's recent past for financial gain, the figures raise serious questions about whether these salaries can be justified.

In late 2021, the International Monetary Fund expressed concern about the "continued worsening performance of SOEs" in South Africa. The accounting period in which state executives raked in multiple millions was one described by the Auditor-General as being characterised by regressing audit outcomes owing to "weak controls", with "financial and performance management" flagged as a particular concern.

Salaries should be pegged to turnover and staff numbers

Guidelines on public sector...