Question NW237 to the Minister of Communications
19 June 2020 - NW237
Mackenzie, Mr C to ask the Minister of Communications
Who has been acting as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the State Information Technology Agency since the resignation of certain person (name furnished); 2. Whether any steps have been taken to fill the CEO position permanently, if not, why not; if so, 3. Whether any prospective applicants were interviewed; if not, why not; if so, what number of applicants were interviewed; 4. Whether any steps of the applicants were found to be suitable for the position; if not, (a) why not and (b) what further steps are being taken to recruit a permanent CEO?
Reply:
I have been advised by SITA as follows:
1. The position of CEO has been vacant since 31 March 2019, after the employment contract of the previous incumbent came to an end. Mr Ntutule Tshenye was then appointed as an acting Chief Executive Officer, whilst the process of sourcing a replacement candidate was underway.
2. Yes, the recruitment process was initiated on 28 April 2019. Inputs were received from key stakeholders, the candidates were sourced through the SITA Website, Sunday Times and Linkedin. The pool of potential candidates was not satisfactory. The then Board of Directors requested additional CVs to be sourced through recruitment agencies.
3. Two (2) shortlisting sessions were held. The first session of the considered CVs received via SITA’s Website, Sunday Times and Linkedin was held on 28 May 2019 and the second session was held on 14 June 2019 to consider CVs received via the recruitment agencies. Five (5) candidates were shortlisted and interviewed on 28 June 2019 and none of the candidates were found suitable for the position.
4. The second phase of the recruitment process was initiated by the previous Board of Directors where the approach was to utilize the services of headhunting firms specialising in executive search. This process required a deviation from the current recruitment panel, which was requested from National Treasury, however it was not granted. The term of office expired for the Board of Directors expired on 31 December 2019. The Minister appointed and Executive Caretaker and Accounting Authority, Mr Luvuyo Keyise from 28 January 2020 and the acting tenure of Mr Ntutule Tshenye ceased on 28 January 2020. As a result, the recruitment process did not proceed.
MS STELLA NDABENI-ABRAHAMS, MP
MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS & DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES