Agriculture minister John Steenhuisen has been sent back to the drawing board to find suitably qualified candidates to appoint in his ministerial office after the department of public service & administration rejected his request to deviate from minimum appointment requirements.
This comes after minister of public service & administration Mzamo Buthelezi turned down Steenhuisen’s request for a deviation from the minimum appointment requirements to allow him to appoint at least four people in his office who do not have the requisite qualifications and experience.
Buthelezi revealed this in a written reply to a parliamentary question from Rise Mzansi MP Makashule Gana.
Buthelezi also said minister of water & sanitation Pemmy Majodina and minister of minerals & petroleum resources Gwede Mantashe were other ministers who had requested deviations from the minimum requirements to appoint candidates who did not meet them for certain jobs.
Buthelezi declined all three requests.
When approached for comment, Steenhuisen said, “I am already in the process of filling these positions.”
It cannot be that, just because someone was assisting in the political office, [he or she] will necessarily be a good fit for the state
— Makashule Gana, Rise Mzansi MP
In his written response, Buthelezi said a new directive on human resources management and development for professionalising the public service came into effect in April.
It prescribes the minimum academic qualifications and minimum years of experience required for appointing people to senior management positions.
Buthelezi’s reply shows Steenhuisen wanted a deviation for three officials who did not meet the minimum qualifications requirement and another one who did not have the requisite number of years of experience.
Majodina wanted a deviation for an official who did not have the minimum qualifications, while Mantashe had two such officials he wanted to appoint.
Steenhuisen wanted to appoint former DA MP Annette Steyn, his DA personal assistant Una Christians, spokesperson Charity McCord, and another candidate identified simply as “Mr Kruger”, all of whom did not meet the minimum requirements for the roles they had been earmarked for.
Steyn had been nominated as a special adviser, Christians was to be Steenhuisen’s private and appointment secretary, McCord was to be made media liaison officer, and Kruger was to become the parliamentary liaison officer.
Steyn, Christians and McCord do not meet the minimum academic requirements stipulated in the Public Service Act, while Kruger lacks the necessary experience.
Gana has welcomed Buthelezi’s decision to decline the requests for deviations, saying politicians are obliged to appoint suitably qualified people in their offices.
“It cannot be that, just because someone was assisting in the political office, [he or she] will necessarily be a good fit for the state,” said Gana.
“It’s a good move by the minister [Buthelezi]. It also sends a strong signal to people who go to school and graduate that there is space for them, and that the days of political appointments that don’t meet the requirements are over.”
The three ministers who requested deviations could take a leaf out of the book of the department of home affairs.
Its minister, Leon Schreiber, holds four university degrees, including a doctorate in political science, which he obtained “magna cum laude at the age of 27”.
Schreiber flaunted his own academic qualifications and those of his staff in response to a question from Build One South Africa leader Mmusi Maimane.
“The minister and the six persons appointed thus far to his office hold a total of 17 degrees between them,” he said.
Schreiber’s chief of staff holds a master’s degree in international studies, an honours degree in political science, and a bachelor’s degree in international studies.
His private and appointment secretary has a BA in law and an LLB.
His media liaison officer has a BA, while his parliamentary officer is armed with an LLM, an LLB, a BA, and a certificate in labour law.
Schreiber’s receptionist has a master’s degree in management, an honours degree, and a BA.
His community outreach officer holds a BCom in law.
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