Public sector procurement : South African ethical and legislative aspects

One of the noblest functions of government is securing for its citizens their individual and collective well-being. This can be achieved through honouring and safeguarding human dignity and the constructive mediation between individual freedoms and collective action. When government succeeds this assures the social and ecological integrity of the community. In every vocation, there is both the need and call for the people within that vocation to conform their behaviour to certain ethical standards. Ethics is the code of conduct these professionals have adopted in order to regulate the practice of their profession. However, ethics also reaches a level of unstated moral principles and a sense of what is right and wrong. A need exists for ethical and transparent public sector procurement management on all spheres of government in contemporary South Africa. Evidence hereof is found in official documents, court cases and in the popular press. Prescriptions governing ethical behaviour in public sector procurement peculiar to South Africa and the basic normative criteria are, interalia, aspects reviewed and proposed in this article to strengthen the need for the determination and implementation of an ethical basis to ensure effective and efficient public sector procurement. Firstly, this article will focus on describing and explaining the nature and meaning of public sector ethics. Secondly, prescriptions’ governing ethical behaviour in public sector procurement management in South Africa since democracy, 1994 with special reference to the local sphere of government is provided. Thirdly, a brief overview of existing general public procurement guidelines as established by the South African Revenue Service is discussed. Fourthly, basic normative criteria are proposed to establish effective, efficient and economical public sector procurement followed by a conclusive summary

The Kinematics of HH 34 from HST Images with a Nine-year Time Baseline

We study archival HST [S II] 6716+30 and Hα images of the HH 34 outflow, taken in 1998.71 and in 2007.83. The ~9 yr time baseline and the high angular resolution of these observations allow us to carry out a detailed proper-motion study. We determine the proper motions of the substructure of the HH 34S bow shock (from the [S II] and Hα frames) and of the aligned knots within ~30'' from the outflow source (only from the [S II] frames). We find that the present-day motions of the knots along the HH 34 jet are approximately ballistic, and that these motions directly imply the formation of a major mass concentration in ~900 yr, at a position similar to the one of the present-day HH 34S bow shock. In other words, we find that the knots along the HH 34 jet will merge to form a more massive structure, possibly resembling HH 34S

Video data modulation study, volume 1 Final report

Video data modulation technique

Magnetic Field Effects on the Structure and Evolution of Overdense Radiatively Cooling Jets

We investigate the effect of magnetic fields on the propagation dynamics and morphology of overdense, radiatively cooling, supermagnetosonic jets, with the help of fully three-dimensional SPMHD simulations. Evaluated for a set of parameters which are mainly suitable for protostellar jets (with density ratios between the jet and the ambient medium 3-10, and ambient Mach number ~ 24), these simulations are also compared with baseline non-magnetic and adiabatic calculations. We find that, after amplification by compression and re-orientation in nonparallel shocks at the working surface, the magnetic field that is carried backward with the shocked gas into the cocoon improves the jet collimation relative to the purely hydrodynamic (HD) systems. Low-amplitude, approximately equally spaced internal shocks (which are absent in the HD systems) are produced by MHD K-H reflection pinch modes. The longitudinal field geometry also excites non-axisymmetric helical modes which cause some beam wiggling. The strength and amount of these modes are, however, reduced (by ~ twice) in the presence of radiative cooling relative to the adiabatic cases. Besides, a large density ratio between the jet and the ambient medium also reduces, in general, the number of the internal shocks. As a consequence, the weakness of the induced internal shocks makes it doubtful that the magnetic pinches could produce by themselves the bright knots observed in the overdense, radiatively cooling protostellar jets.Comment: To appear in ApJ; 36 pages + 16 (gif) figures. PostScript files of figures are available at http://www.iagusp.usp.br/preprints/preprint.htm

The Enigmatic HH 255

To gain insight into the nature of the peculiar Herbig-Haro object HH 255 (also called Burnham's nebula), we use previously published observations to derive information about the emission line fluxes as a function of position within HH 255 and compare them with the well-studied, and relatively well-behaved bow shock HH 1. There are some qualitative similarities in the H$\alpha$ and [O III] 5007 lines in both objects. However, in contrast to the expectation of the standard bow shock model, the fluxes of the [O I] 6300, [S II] 6731, and [N II] 6583 lines are essentially constant along the axis of the flow, while the electron density decreases, over a large distance within HH 255. We also explore the possibility that HH 255 represents the emission behind a standing or quasi-stationary shock. The shock faces upwind, and we suggest, using theoretical arguments, that it may be associated with the collimation of the southern outflow from T Tauri. Using a simplified magnetohydrodynamic simulation to illustrate the basic concept, we demonstrate that the existence of such a shock at the north edge of HH 255 could indeed explain its unusual kinematic and ionization properties. Whether or not such a shock can explain the detailed emission line stratification remains an open question.Comment: Accepted by PASP, 12 pages including 8 figure

Optical and Near Infrared Study of the Cepheus E outflow, a very low excitation object

We present images and spectra of the Cepheus E (Cep E) region at both optical and infrared wavelengths. Only the brightest region of the southern lobe of the Cep E outflow reveals optical emission, suggesting that the extinction close to the outflow source plays an important r\^ole in the observed difference between the optical and IR morphologies. Cep E is a unique object since it provides a link between the spectroscopic properties of the optical Herbig-Haro (HH) objects and those of deeply embedded outflows.Comment: Accepted Astron. J., 8 files: paper, tables plus 6 figure

Aerosol particles in the Mexican East Pacific <BR> Part I: processing and vertical redistribution by clouds

International audienceAirborne measurements of aerosol particle size distributions were made in the Mexican Intertropical Convergence Zone. The volume concentrations of submicron and super micron particles at cloud base were compared with those in near-cloud regions over a range of altitudes. Of 78 near-cloud regions analyzed, 68% and 45% had enhanced volumes of submicron particles and supermicron particles, respectively. In addition, 35% of these regions had supermicron particles removed, presumably by precipitation. In 61% of the cases the enhancement in volume occurred over the size range from 0.1 to 50 ?m whereas only submicron volumes were enhanced in 35% of the cases. In regions near clouds that were formed in air of maritime origin the frequency of volume enhancement decreased with increasing altitude and was twice as frequent on the dissipating side of clouds compared to the growing side. No such differences were found in the regions near clouds formed in air originating from the land. The frequency and average magnitude of volume enhancement are in qualitative and quantitative agreement with previous observational and theoretical studies that relate enhancements in particle mass to the uptake by cloud droplets of SO2 accompanied by additional growth by droplet coalescence

Decentralisation and service delivery : human resource issues in Wakiso and Nakaseke districts of Uganda

This article investigates human resource issues in the decentralised districts of Nakaseke and Wakiso in Uganda and the manner in which they pose a challenge to service delivery in local government. The article argues that human resource issues have implications for the empowerment of citizens and for service delivery in local communities in Uganda. While the decentralisation policy has been integral to the democratic government system that has taken root in Uganda since the 1990s, the link between decentralisation and empowering communities through service delivery is not automatic. The decentralisation policy has encountered a number of challenges relating to the legal and institutional framework, the political, financial and administrative issues. Some of the bottlenecks in service delivery are related to human resource issues because they determine the efficiency and the quality of services offered by local government structures. The article encompasses both primary and secondary data in analysing the relationship between decentralisation (specifically human resource aspects) and service delivery in Wakiso and Nakaseke. Data was collected through interviews, questionnaires and focus group discussions, as well as through a literature survey of relevant documents such as reports, minutes, legislation, journals, newspapers and textbooks. The findings reveal that districts are constrained by human resource challenges that entail inadequate staff, lack of competence among elected leaders, ambiguous legislation to guide district officials in their work and inappropriate training policies. The article recommends mitigation measures to address the human resource challenges in order to enhance efficiency in service delivery

Legislative and administrative directives governing procurement procedures : a local government perspective

To enact a comprehensive body of rules to regulate public procurement is only one element in fostering compliance with the norms and objectives of a sound public procurement programme. The development of a sound legal framework is a core element in the modernisation and improvement of public procurement systems. The task of government institutions is to achieve the policy objectives which have been set by the government for societal life. As public policy-maker, the government strives to establish a generally preferred future for society. Any deliberations by the policy-maker on the establishment and realisation of such a preferred future should, of necessity, include, interalia, the setting of standards and respect for the administrative legal framework to guide functionaries in government institutions on how to execute policy. The essence of public procurement legislation is to define and enforce those procedures that will deliver a productive and efficient result, while respecting the public nature of the process and the duty of fairness to the suppliers. Government institutions are not usually established with a view to profit-making, with the consequence, the objectives of their procurement function will differ considerably from the objectives of an establishment in the private sector. In this article, the legislative and administrative directives which impact and govern the procurement system in South Africa will be discussed. The article will conclude with recommendations based on an empirical survey to establish attitudes towards public procurement policies with specific reference to the local sphere of government

Millimeter- and Submillimeter-Wave Observations of the OMC-2/3 Region. II. Observational Evidence for Outflow-Triggered Star Formation in the OMC-2 FIR 3/4 Region

We have carried out the observations of the OMC-2 FIR 3/4 region with the NMA and ASTE in the H$^{13}$CO$^{+}$ (1--0), $^{12}$CO (3--2, 1--0), SiO ($v$=0, $J$=2--1), CS (2--1), and CH$_3$OH ($J_K$=7$_K$--6$_K$) lines and in the 3.3 mm continuum emission. Our NMA observations in the H$^{13}$CO$^{+}$ emission have revealed 0.07 pc-scale dense gas associated with FIR 4. The $^{12}$CO (3--2,1--0) emission shows high-velocity blue and red shifted components at the both north-east and south-west of FIR 3, suggesting a molecular outflow nearly along the plane of the sky driven by FIR 3. The SiO and the CH$_{3}$OH emission are detected around the interface between the outflow and the dense gas. Furthermore, the $^{12}$CO (1--0) emission shows an L-shaped structure in the P-V diagram. These results imply presence of the shock due to the interaction between the molecular outflow driven by FIR 3 and the dense gas associated with FIR 4. Moreover, our high angular-resolution observations of FIR 4 in the 3.3 mm continuum emission have first found that FIR 4 consists of eleven dusty cores. The separation among these cores is on the same order of the Jeans length, suggesting that the fragmentation into these cores has been caused by the gravitational instability. The time scale of the fragmentation is similar to the time scale of the interaction between the molecular outflow and the dense gas. We suggest that the interaction between the molecular outflow from FIR 3 and the dense gas associated with FIR 4 triggered the fragmentation into these dusty cores, and hence the next generation the cluster formation.Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures. Accepted by Ap