Mystery CIO for LOC

By Christelle du Toit, ITWeb senior journalist

Johannesburg, 21 May 2008

SA's 2010 World Cup Local Organising Committee (LOC) has a new CIO, says CEO Danny Jordaan, but he is staying mum on who it is.

This news comes hot on the heels of the revelation that the present CIO - or "IT manager", as Jordaan refers to him - has resigned.

In March, ITWeb broke the news that LOC CIO Zakes Mnsisi was suspended pending a disciplinary investigation into alleged financial impropriety.

Subsequently, he has decided to follow the same route as the LOC's controversial HR manager who appointed him, resigning before the disciplinary process could be wrapped up.

It also came to light at the time of his suspension that Mnisi's track record with state outsourcing company arivia.kom, where he also faced charges of financial irregularities, was never checked.

Yesterday, Mnisi said he would decide in due course whether to comment on his resignation. Meanwhile, his shoes are to be filled at the LOC as of next month.

"We have a CIO," said Jordaan yesterday on the occasion of the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the LOC, the South African Football Association (Safa) and the Premier Soccer League (PSL).

"We are in negotiations, but we have a commitment," said Jordaan.

He would not divulge the name of the person who will move into the hot seat, saying only that it was someone from "industry" who was of "high-quality" and "very respected".

He said the new CIO would commence work on 1 June, when Jordaan would be able to reveal his name. According to Jordaan, the new CIO was "already here", implying that he was already getting to grips with the status quo at the LOC.

In Mnisi's absence, the LOC's COO, Nomfanelo Magwentshu, acted on his behalf.

Mnsisi was appointed under the patronage of Nomzamo Kasana, the then head of human resources at the LOC, who was subsequently charged with incompetence and insubordination, but resigned before facing disciplinary action.

More work

The 2010 LOC CIO is responsible for the oversight of all ICT activities related to the sporting event. This means that, although he is not directly responsible for implementing systems like an electronic booking system for foreign visitors, or connectivity between stadiums, he does have to oversee all of this.

Government has set aside R1.5 billion for ICT for the Soccer World Cup, and this amount could still grow as the event draws closer.

In addition, the scope of the CIO's work has expanded with the signing of the memorandum of understanding with the PSL and SAFA.

Under the agreement, penned by Jordaan, Safa CEO Raymond Hack and PSL CEO Kjetil Siem, the three bodies will work together to create a legacy for the country post-2010, including technology.

Dennis Mumble, chief competitions officer for the LOC, explained that, although Fifa would use an international partner to bring in software solutions for the 2010 Soccer World Cup, SA would have to provide all the hardware and infrastructure, such as fibre optics.

He says the country - and specifically Safa and the PSL - would look to benefit not only from this, but also from Fifa's IT knowledge and skills.

To this end, the three bodies would negotiate with Fifa to leave some of the software solutions used behind, so that hardware like electronic ticketing terminals at stadiums does not become obsolete.

"We want to retain that knowledge, as well as some of the systems," notes Mumble.