and also ensure that cases are resolved within reasonable time. Reported cases of corruption and responses thereof, are examined elaborately in section 3.1.7 below. The establishment of the Presidential Hotline which serves as an important source of information for government wide performance monitoring and evaluation, and for monitoring the impact of government on citizens, promotes a well coordinated response mechanism to citizen problems. The hotline has enabled government to track issues that are important to citizens as well as keeping citizens informed about the responses to such issues. At the level of political democracy, South Africa has, in broad terms, a dual model of democracy through which citizens can participate. These are: Representative Democracy through which voters participate in voting processes to elect public representatives to advance their interests and needs; and Participatory Democracy whereby citizens are enabled to participate in decision making processes of government, implementation of programmes and evaluation of government performance using forums such as izimbizo (public meetings) and these platforms give citizens back their voices in ensuring that their interests and needs are served. The diagram below shows areas where there is concurrence of competencies amongst the three spheres of government in terms of Schedule 4 of the Constitution, as well as how citizens interface with the spheres of government, as an expression of their participation in decision-making processes. Inter-sphere concurrence of competencies Area of concurrent responsibility Responsible for Matters affecting the whole country National Responsible for Matters affecting a province Responsible for Matters affecting a local council Provincial Local The three spheres of Government make it easier for the elected representatives to meet the diverse needs of the citizens and make Government more accessible to the citizens. Source: Chakras Consulting: Final draft institutional review report – Public Participation Intervention, Gauteng Legislature, 2011 South Africa’s commitment to a people-centered democracy through public participation is demonstrating cumulative improvement. The Public Service Monitoring and Evaluation Report of the Public Service Commission, published in February 2011 showed a trend of consolidation when it comes to public participation. As the report indicates, “the most popular way of interacting with the public” is izimbizo which are utilized by seven (78%) provinces, followed by ward committees (67%), steering committee meetings and public meetings 32