It is often only with hindsight that the real impact of the past can be appreciated, examined and properly unpacked for the implications and effects to be fully realised.
While 2009 is no doubt a year of massive movement within the ICT sector as a whole, it will only be in five or ten years time that the full importance of what has happened will really play itself out.
No doubt the year was full of highlights, which actually started towards the end of 2008 when Altech won its court battle that allowed value-added network services to gain fully fledged telecommunications licenses.
The importance of this case was that it exposed the former policy of “managed liberalisation” for being what it truly was - a farce with no real basis in terms of either meeting real needs or being good for the country. Hopefully that is all behind us.
New faces
The May general elections ushered in a “new administration”, especially noted in the Department of Communications. Former chief of the defence force Siphiwe Nyanda assumed the mantle of communications minister with a grass roots activist Dina Pule as his deputy.
The appointment of Mamopuphi Mohlala as director general came as a surprise many thanks to her being a former, if somewhat controversial ICASA councillor. Yet she has also been known for her outspoken views and has a reputation for a single minded pursuit of an issue, irrespective of whose toes she has stood on or whose shoulders she has climbed on.
It will only be in five or ten years time that the full importance of what has happened will really play itself out.
Paul Vecchiatto, Cape Town correspondent, ITWeb
Parliament's communications committee reconvened after the elections and was also almost a totally new group.
While some veterans remained, such as its chairperson Ismail Vadi and Eric Kohlwane of the African National Congress, it received some new faces. The firebrand leader of the Independent Democrats Patricia de Lille; outspoken, but considered Juli Killian of the Congress of the People; and Lindiwe Mazibuko of the Democratic Alliance, all joined the bench. The latter has proven to be a young but considered politician who is still learning the ropes.
Broadcast wrangle
The committee had to deal with the governance and financial mess at the SABC, which turned out to be a tedious affair for the most part, although it was punctuated by some amusing turns. This included the “I suck as a leader” comment from its former chairperson Khanyi Mkohonza.
The interim SABC board appointed by this committee had at least two personalities who have been reasonably well known to the ICT sector, namely Irene Charnley, a former executive director of MTN and Suzanne Vos a former IFP member of parliament on the communications committee.
It is still to be seen if the SABC's woes are over. The corporation is in the red to the tune of R970 million and the guarantees signed by government have to be honoured some time in the future. Its new chairperson Solly Mokoetle has expressed his concern about the corporation being ready to transmit during next year's Soccer World Cup.
The SABC is also embroiled in a court case over the awarding of tenders for outside broadcasting units. If it looses it could see a large chunk of that government guarantee being siphoned off to pay for legal costs and compensation.
Cost to communicate
Of course the big interest by Parliament was when the committee, at the prompting of Patricia de Lille, decided to examine the cellular network operators' interconnection fee charges. These were said to be the main reason why the country's cell phone costs are so high.
The real benefit of the October/November hearings was they generated much wider public interest in telecommunications as a whole, and that prices need to come down. It also caused some interesting competition of its own between the legislative and the executive arms of government on who could deliver.
Needless to say neither could. While some kind of agreement has been reached, and maybe prices will come down, it will only be the advent of more competition in the sector, with the creation of at least another two or three network operators, that prices will come down.
So for parliament and the legislature I would give each either a pass mark of a C+ or B-, they are trying but could do better. Believe me this is a far better mark than the fail grades of the past 10 years.
Related story:
2009: The way we were
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