The department of communications (DOC) is in a mess. Minister Dina Pule and director-general Rosey Sekese are no longer on speaking terms and, although Sekese has been back at work for the past two weeks following her recent suspension, she’s reportedly been locked out of her office.
At the same time, Pule is still referring to one of Sekese’s deputies, Gift Buthelezi, who filled Sekese’s role in her enforced “special leave”, as the acting director-general.
The situation has left the DOC in a state of paralysis, sources close the situation say. This is a worrying development for the information and communications technology sector, which is waiting for the department to make decisions on a number of key issues, including migration to digital terrestrial television and the allocation of radio frequency spectrum.
Internal correspondence in TechCentral’s possession shows that Pule has stripped Sekese of her powers to hire and fire staff. In a letter to the director-general dated 10 April 2013 and headed “review of the delegations of authority”, the minister reassigned some of Sekese’s responsibilities based on the powers vested in her as an “executive authority”.
This includes reassigning “all human resources matters” to Buthelezi, including HR planning, hiring and firing, job descriptions and evaluations, grading and remuneration of employees, transfers and promotions, and staff discipline.
Sekese was placed on special leave at the beginning of the year. It remains unclear what prompted the move, with the ministry insisting it was an “internal matter not for public consumption”. The move came two months after parliament’s portfolio committee on communications found that Sekese had “misled” parliament regarding the signing of her performance agreement for the 2012/2013 financial year.
Pule’s spokesman, Siya Qoza, was unable to answer questions on Monday afternoon about why Sekese’s powers had been curtailed or why she was placed on special leave in the first place.
Sekese was unwilling to comment and directed TechCentral to her attorney, Sandile July, who said he did not know why the director-general was suspended in the first place and had been told she would be transferred to another department.
Sekese took the matter on review at the labour court, challenging the fact that she was placed on special leave and the fact that there were plans to transfer her without first consulting with her, July said. “Nothing stops the minister of public service & administration from redeploying her. But how can she be transferred without her consent?”
A source close to the DOC says the department has been “politicised and paralysed” by the conflict between Pule and Sekese and that the director-general’s ability to perform her duties and manage her staff has been “severely compromised” by the minister reining in her powers.
It’s unclear whether, from a labour law perspective, the minister was entitled to limit Sekese’s powers or what the implications are if she is no longer able to satisfy the requirements of her position.
At the weekend, the Sunday Independent reported that Sekese was forced to approach the courts to lift her suspension after she was twice locked out of her office. The newspaper said DOC security personnel had at one point threatened to evict her from the building, and police were called in to remove her from the premises.
Pule, meanwhile, is set to appear before parliament’s joint committee on ethics and members’ interests next month concerning allegations that an alleged romantic interest of hers, Phosane Mngqibisa, benefited to the tune of R6m from the sponsorship of last year’s ICT Indaba in Cape Town. The public protector is also due to issue a report on the same matter, possibly as early as this week.
A TechCentral source with working knowledge of the department says it has “ground to a halt” and that it is unlikely the conflict between Pule and Sekese will be resolved until the minister’s own fate is decided. — (c) 2013 NewsCentral Media
