PAIA Manual

PAIA MANUAL IN TERMS OF SECTION 51 OF THE PROMOTION OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION ACT (PAIA)

THE PROMOTION OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION ACT (PAIA)

1. INTRODUCTION

• The 1996 South African Constitution entrenches the fundamental right to access to information by providing a statutory right of access on request to any record held by the state as well as access to records held by private bodies.
• The Promotion of Access to Information Act 2 of 2000 (“PAIA”), which came into effect on 9 March 2001, seeks to advance the values of transparency and accountability in South Africa and provides the mechanism for requesters to exercise and protect their constitutional right to request access to a record.
• PAIA establishes the following statutory rights of requesters to any record of a private body if:
  • That record is required for the exercise or protection of any of his or her legal rights;
  • That requester complies with all the procedural requirements; and
  • Access is not refused in terms of any ground referred to in the Act.

2. PURPOSE

• This manual is published in terms of Section 51(1) of PAIA in terms of which private bodies are required to publish a manual to assist requesters who wish to request access to a record (the Manual).
• The Manual sets out in summary:
  • The contact details of the Information Officer,
  • The structure and functions of the Company as a whole;
  • A description of the Personal Information and records retained and processed by the Company; and
  • A description of the records of the Company which are available in accordance with any other legislation;
  • A description of the procedure that should be followed and the criteria that have to be met by a party who wishes to access records and information retained by the Company
• A copy of the Manual is available on request from Celeste Thomas.

3. ACCESS TO INFORMATION

• PAIA provides that everyone has the right of access to information held by another person when that information is required for the exercise or protection of any rights.
• Therefore, a requester must satisfy to the Information Officer that the information or record to which they seek access is required in order to exercise or protect a right.
• Requests shall be made in accordance with the prescribed procedures, at the rates provided in this Manual.
• Requesters are also referred to the Guide in terms of Section 10 of PAIA which has been compiled by the South African Human Rights Commission, which will contain information for the purposes of exercising Constitutional Rights. The Guide is available from the SAHRC.
• The contact details of the Commission are:

Postal Address: Private Bag 2700, Houghton, 2041

Telephone Number: +27-11-877 3600

Fax Number: +27-11-403 0625

Website: www.sahrc.org.za

4.COMPANY INFORMATION OFFICER AND CONTACT DETAILS

Information Officer[1]:	Alfie Jay
Delegated Information Officer/s[2]:	Celeste Thomas;  Desiré Killian
Physical Address:	Algoa FM House, 5 Upper Valley Road, South End, Gqeberha, 6001
Tel:	(041) 505 9497
E-mail:	popi@algoafm.co.za

5. COMPANY PROFILE AND STRUCTURE

Umoya Communications (Pty) Ltd, trading as Algoa FM, is a commercial radio, media broadcasting company. It is a subsidiary of African Media Entertainment Limited, “AME”, listed in the Media Sector of the Johannesburg Securities Exchange (“JSE”) of South Africa.

Algoa FM is an adult contemporary radio station broadcasting from the Garden Route to the Wild Coast and inland through the Karoo. The on-air product is lifestyle focused towards adults who enjoy good music and indulge in quality life experiences.

The station also provides global, national, regional and local news, as well as sport, local traffic updates, weather reports and the latest entertainment news.

The Management Structure is as follows:

Managing Director:	Alfie Jay
Financial Manager:	Desiré Killian
Human Resources Manager:	Celeste Thomas
Facilities and Infrastructure Manager:	Chris Wright
Marketing Manager:	Lesley Geyer
Sales Manager:	Dennis Karantges
Programme Manager:	Baydu Adams
News Editor:	Shadley Nash

[Provide overview and description of Company structure, purpose, key business areas, target market, etc.]

6. LEGISLATIVE REQUIREMENTS IN TERMS OF S 51(1)(d)

The Company retains records and information in accordance with the following legislation.

No 61 of 1973           Companies Act

No 55 of 1998           Employment Equity Act

No 95 of 1967           Income Tax Act

No 66 of 1995           Labour Relations Act

No 89 of 1991           Value Added Tax Act

No 75 of 1997           Basic Conditions of Employment Act

No 4 of 2013             Protection of Personal Information Act

No 25 of 2002           Electronic Communications and Transactions Act

No 130 of 1993         Compensation for Occupational and Diseases Act

No 2 of 2000             Promotion of Access of Information Act

No 63 of 2001           Unemployment Insurance Act

No 68 of 2008           Consumer Protection Act

No 38 of 2001           Financial Intelligence Centre Act

No 85 of 1993           Occupational Health and Safety Act

No 97 of 1998           Skills Development Act

No 9 of 1999             Skills Development Levies Act

No 34 of 2005           The National Credit Act

No 4 of 2002             Unemployment Insurance Contributions Act

7. DESCRIPTION OF RECORDS HELD BY THE COMPANY IN ACCORDANCE WITH S51(e)

• The Company retains records of the following categories of subjects:
  
  

• • Corporate Affairs
    
    

• • • Newsletters
    • Corporate and Social Investment
    • Media releases
    • Public corporate records
      
      

• • Company Governance
    
    

• • • Annual reports
    • Board of Directors
    • Shareholder Agreements
    • Share certificates
    • Codes of conduct
    • Minutes of board meetings
    • Memoranda of Incorporation
    • Legal compliance records
      
      

• • Finance
    
    
    • Accounting records
    • Audit reports
    • Annual financial statements
    • Capital expenditure reports
    • Investment records
    • Invoices
    • Receipts
    • Statements
    • Remittance advices
    • Sales records
    • Purchasing records
    • Tax records
    • Tax returns
      
      

• • Human Resources
    
    

• • • Employee information, which includes:

1. 1. 1. 1. Race
         2. Gender
         3. Sex
         4. Marital status
         5. Age
         6. Disability status
         7. Language
         8. Information relating to education and employment history
         9. ID number
         10. Email address and contact number
         11. Physical address
         12. Biometric information
         13. Correspondence between employee and Company

• • • HR policies and procedures
    • Training records
    • Contracts of employment
    • Employment equity reports
    • Leave records
    • Pension fund and medical aid records
    • UIF records
    • Attendance registers
    • Clocking records
    • Remuneration records
    • Payslips
      
      

• • Marketing
    
    
    • Marketing strategies
    • Marketing materials
    • Product/ Service brochures
    • Marketing policies and procedures
    • Data subject information
    • Advertising material
      
      

• • Legal
    
    
    • Documentation and records relating to actual and/or potential litigation
    • Documentation and records relating to ongoing investigations
    • Legal compliance records
      
      
  • Intellectual Property
    
    
    • Copyrights
    • Existing and pending Trademark applications
    • Any agreements relating to the Company’s intellectual property
      
      

8. REQUEST FOR ACCESS TO RECORDS AND/OR INFORMATION (S53)

• Any requester who seeks access to any of the above records held by the Company must follow the procedure set out below:
  • Complete the prescribed Request for Access form.[3]
  • Address the request to the Information Officer identified above.
  • Provide sufficient details in the request for access at to enable the Company to identify:
    • The record(s) requested;
    • The requester (and if an agent is lodging the request, proof of capacity);
    • The form of access required;
    • The postal address or fax number of the requester;
    • If the requester wishes to be informed of the decision in any manner (in addition to written) the manner and particulars thereof;
    • The right which the requester is seeking to exercise or protect with an explanation of the reason the record is required to exercise or protect the right.
      
      

9. If it is reasonably suspected that the requester has obtained access to the Company’s records through the submission of materially false or misleading information, legal proceedings may be instituted against such requester.

10. PAYMENT OF PRESCRIBED FEE (S54) READ WITH PART III OF THE REGULATIONS

• A requestor who seeks access to records of the Company is required to pay the prescribed fee of R50.00 and complete form “A” attached.
• If the preparation of the requested record requires more than six hours, a deposit shall paid (of not more than one third of the access fee which would be payable if the request were granted);
• Records may be withheld until the fees have been paid.
• The complete breakdown of fees for requests to a private body is attached.[4]
  
  

11. NOTIFICATION

• The Company will, within thirty (30) days of receipt of the request, determine whether to grant or decline the request.[5]
• The thirty (30) day period within which the Company has to decide whether to grant or refuse the request, may be extended for a further period of not more than thirty (30) days, if the request is for a large volume of information, or the request requires a search for information held at another office of the Company and the information cannot be reasonably obtained within the original thirty (30) day period. The Company will notify the requester in writing should an extension be sought.
• Where the request for access to a record is granted the requester will be notified of the following:
  • The amount of the access fee payable upon gaining access to the record;
  • An indication of the form in which the access will be granted; and
  • Notice that the requester may lodge an application with a court against the payment of the access fee and the procedure, including the period, for lodging the application
• If the request for access to a record is denied the requester will be notified of such refusal together with adequate reasons for the refusal.[6]
• If the Company has searched for a record and it is believed that the record neither exists nor cannot be found, the requester will be notified by way of an affirmation.[7] This will include the steps that were taken to try to locate the record.
  
  

12. GROUNDS FOR REFUSAL TO ACCESS OF RECORDS

• Requests for access may be refused on the following grounds:
  • Mandatory protection of privacy of a third party who is a natural person, including a deceased person, which would involve the unreasonable disclosure of Personal Information of that natural person;
  • Mandatory protection of commercial information of a third party or the Company, if the record contains:
    • Trade secrets of the third party or the Company
    • Financial, commercial, scientific, or technical information which disclosure could likely cause harm to the financial or commercial interests of the third party or the Company; and
    • Information supplied in confidence by a third party to the Company if the disclosure could put that third party to a disadvantage or commercial competition.
• Mandatory protection of certain confidential information of a third party if disclosure of the record would result in a breach of a duty of confidence owed to that party in terms of an agreement.
• Mandatory protection of the safety of individuals, and the protection of property.
• Mandatory protection of records privileged from production in legal proceedings, unless the legal privilege has been waived; and
• Mandatory protection of research information of a third party and of the Company.
  
  

13. APPEAL

If a requester is aggrieved by the refusal of the Information Officer to grant a request for a record, the requester may, within 180 days of notification of the Information Officer’s decision, apply to a competent court for appropriate relief.

[1] Form A1

[2] Form A2

[3] Form A

[4] Form B

[5] Form C

[6] As per Form C

[7] Form D