Soundbite by Toby Chance MP.
Minister Parks Tau must not repeat the mistake of his predecessor Ebrahim Patel who took 18 months to appoint a replacement for disgraced National Lotteries Commission (NLC) chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda.
With Dr Barney Pityana’s reported resignation as chairperson of the (NLC) two years before his five-year term ends, Minister Tau must immediately begin the process to find his successor.
Pityana took up his position as chair in August 2022 to clean up the organisation and to restore its image after years of corruption and looting under Nevhutanda. In the three years he has occupied this position, he can be credited with beginning that arduous task, alongside Commissioner Jodi Scholtz who was appointed in February 2023.
Before clearing his desk, Dr Pityana must exert every effort to ensure that the R20 million allocated to reparations for former employees whose lives were ruined by litigation for blowing the whistle on corrupt employees and lawyers is finally paid out.
If he can accomplish this, his scorecard will end on a positive note.
The appointment process to find his successor will require the portfolio committee on trade, industry and competition to scrutinise the submitted names and compile a short list from which Tau must make his decision.
The Democratic Alliance will ensure that only individuals of impeccable integrity and track record will be considered.