NYANDA'S AXING NOT UNEXPECTED - COPE MP JULI KILIAN CALLS ON NEW MINISTER TO RECALL DRACONIAN BILLS.
In addition to former Min Nyanda's lack of insight, poor performance in a critical portfolio has deepened the digital divide leaving poor communities even further behind, said Juli Kilian, MP serving in the Communications Portfolio Committee.
Nyanda also chose to alienate the country's ICT sector, depriving the country of a wealth of skills and experience that could have contributed a further 1% to economic growth and resultant job creation.
His inexplicable u-turn on digital standards for South Africa , brought the fledging ICT manufacturing sector to its knees.
Nyanda's term of office will best be remembered for his inordinate meddling, extended witch hunts, and leadership squabbles that caused the virtual implosion of the department of Communications with disastrous impact on the public entities involved with the DoC.
In addition to Nyanda's notorious high flying lifestyle at taxpayer's expense, his continuous political interference in the functioning of independent institutions such as the SABC, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) and Sentech were more than ample cause to dismiss the man as Communications Minister.
Nyanda's cavalier ignorance of public accountability and ethics in public life was further exposed after COPE approached the Public Protector on issues of his multimillion personal business empire where after he was found guilty of breaching the Executive Code of Ethics.
Going forward, COPE calls on the new Minister of Communication to immediately recall two draconian bills - the SABC Bill and the ICASA Bill - which are fundamentally unconstitutional. He should without delay also take steps to align the Department of Communications with the strategic imperatives that drives a modern ICT sector. To start off, he should institute a skills audit and commission a review of the organisational structure of the DoC.
Statement issued by Juli Kilian, MP, COPE member of the Parliamentary Communications Portfolio Committee, November 2 2010
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