A day short of a year after notorious murderer and rapist Thabo Bester’s escape from the Mangaung Correctional Centre, the Department of Correctional Services has served the private company managing the prison with a notice that it will be terminating its contract.

While this could put the prison back under the department's management within 90 days, a legal challenge to the move is expected.

Addressing the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services on Tuesday morning, Justice Minister Ronald Lamola announced that they had issued the Mangaung Correctional Services with a notice to terminate the contract.

"The notice to terminate follows a legal opinion that DCS had sought. It has been deemed that BCC is not suitable to continue with the contract," Lamola said.

"In line with the concession contract agreement, a termination notice for a period of 90 days has been served to BCC [Bloemfontein Correctional Contracts], and thereafter, the contract will cease to operate. DCS has already resumed with an internal exercise for the takeover process."

The move was welcomed by African Christian Democratic Party MP Steve Swart, who asked Lamola to elaborate.

"Indeed, we have received the legal opinion, which does show that the systematic challenges which we faced with the MCC over a number of years, including the last one with the escape, points to the fact that the management contract or concession contract cannot continue in this kind of a format, because, indeed, they are struggling to meet the contractual obligations," Lamola responded.

"Therefore, the department has decided, and issued a notice of termination to the Mangaung management company with regards to this matter.

"We will prefer to leave it there, because it is an area of uncertainty in terms of litigations and so forth. But suffice to say that notice has been served this morning."

Bester escaped from the Mangaung Correctional Centre on 3 May 2022 after faking his death in a fire in a solitary cell he had requested to be placed in days before.

Only in the past month has Bester and his alleged accomplices, including his partner Nandipha Magudumana, been arrested.

Bester and Magudumana were arrested in Tanzania.

Lamola said the department continued to be in the news following Bester’s escape.

"Bester is currently incarcerated at the secure Kgosi Mampuru C-Max Facility. He will be appearing with his co-accused on 16 May 2023 in Bloemfontein. The South African Police Service continues to make several arrests over this matter," he said.

He sought to assure the committee that "inmates are incarcerated securely and in humane conditions".

According to Lamola, out of an inmate population of 143 223, only 22 had escaped during the 2021-22 financial year.

"We are the first to acknowledge that one escape at our facilities is one too many," he said.

Lamola said they would "redouble" their security operations to prevent escapes and "deal harshly" with officials who don't adhere to standard operating procedures.