Question NW2285 to the Minister of Public Enterprises
20 November 2020 - NW2285
Maotwe, Ms OMC to ask the Minister of Public Enterprises
(1)On what date did a certain senior Eskom official (name furnished) complete his Master of Business Administration degree; (2) Whether the degree was verified with the SA Qualification Authority; if not, why not; if so, what are the further relevant details?
Reply:
According to the information received from Eskom
1. Mr André de Ruyter obtained his Master of Business Administration qualification on 17 September 1998.
2. The qualification was verified on behalf of Eskom, prior to Mr de Ruyter’s appointment, by Lexis Refcheck. Eskom did not request SAQA to evaluate or verify the qualification.
As part of all executive appointments in Eskom, a full verification by a reputable company has to be done to verify ID number, driver’s license and criminalrecords and ensure the candidate has obtained all the qualifications listed on their résumés.
SAQA evaluation/verification of overseas qualifications is not a specific requirement for the appointments of executives at Eskom. A SAQA verification by the qualification holder will be requested only when the foreign qualification is a minimum requirement.
It is also important to note that as of 16 September 2019, only qualification holders (QHs) may apply for the evaluation of their foreign qualifications.
The above requirement according to SAQA, is to ensure that QHs are the prima facie owners of their applications and the outcomes thereof, including the protection of their private details. For this reason, SAQA will only interact directly with QHs, and involve third parties only when they are the parents or legal guardians of the affected QHs.
Please note that the change in the SAQA approach took place before Mr de Ruyter’s appointment and verification of his qualification.
Government has total confidence in Mr de Ruyter who has already made a substantial difference in Eskom. We call on all stakeholders to support the efforts of the Board and management team in their efforts to restore good governance, operational effectiveness, financial stability and efficiently implement the Eskom Roadmap.