Members of Parliament yesterday called for urgent action to replace Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) councillors who are scheduled to leave their posts by month`s end.
Three of the regulator`s seven councillors are due to leave as their four-year terms have expired, yet the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Communications, the legislative oversight body, has yet to advertise these posts. The councillors are Nadia Bulbulia, Lumko Mtimde and Mamodupi Mohlala. A number of senior staff, including general managers, have also resigned.
"It is an urgent matter and the time to do something is all but up," Rubben Mohlaloga (ANC) told the committee.
ICASA chairman Paris Mahile said he hoped the three councillors would consider staying on for at least the 45-day extension allowed in the current ICASA Act, but that it was unclear how this would be done.
Mashile pointed out that, if ICASA were left with only four councillors, it would have the bare minimum to form a quorum every time it had to meet to make a decision.
"The provision on the extended period has never been enacted before. I suppose it is up to the president [Thabo Mbeki] as the appointing officer to extend their periods," said committee acting chairman Godfrey Oliphant (ANC).
ICASA`s Mtimde said the councillors had requested the expiry of the terms be taken into account when the ICASA Amendment Bill was debated last year and now that its implementation has been delayed in order to sort out constitutional issues, had put added pressure on the regulator.
Randy Pietersen (ANC) said that time was needed to find suitable candidates.
"We won`t find these people just walking the streets looking for a job. The most suitable candidates will be employed and will have to give things like notice if they decide to join ICASA," he said.
Yesterday`s presentation by ICASA before the parliamentary committee was to illustrate the workload before the regulator due to its absorption of the postal regulator and the impact of the Electronic Communications Act, once it becomes effective.
Members of Parliament also asked questions concerning the recent spate of media reports indicating there was instability within the telecommunications and broadcasting regulator. However, the committee chairman decided against this line of questioning and asked rather for ideas whereby ICASA could be strengthened.
Deputy communications minister Roy Padayachie was allowed to make closing remarks at the end of the sitting and he asked a number of rhetorical questions, such as: "Is the perceived crises in ICASA caused by internal or external factors?"
Padayachie said one of the factors leading to the perception of instability was that "ICASA, and industry, is on the threshold of seeing new legislation implemented that could initially cause a lot of flux and uncertainty".
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