ESTVA CEO myself – PS
SCOPE, a team of selected Cabinet ministers, rejected the ministry’s request on the basis that it contravened the Public Enterprises Act. Dlamini (Mlamuli) is based in the United States.”
and Technology had requested for its appointment of the candidate to be endorsed for full-SCOPE consideration.
Full-SCOPE consists of all the Cabinet ministers.
ESTVA is a State-owned broadcaster established in 1983 through an Act of Parliament. It was officially opened by King Sobhuza II in 1978. At that time it was known as the Swaziland Television Broadcasting Corporation (STBC). ESTVA runs a station known as Eswatini TV.
It was established that the ESTVA Board, under the chairmanship of Prince Sicunusa, was unaware that the ministry had submitted the name of a candidate who was unknown to it to lead the authority.
The candidate was to be appointed despite the fact that he was neither interviewed by KQ Consulting (Pty) Ltd nor the second consulting firm,
SAMKHO.
SAMKHO was reportedly engaged after Princess Sikhanyiso, the Minister of ICT, had allegedly declined to appoint Mncedisi Mayisela as the new CEO of the public enterprise. On the basis of the KQ report, which ranked Mayisela No.1 during the interviews, the Board had no alternative but to recommend him for the job.
The final interview results produced by KQ Consulting (Pty) Ltd were as follows –
Mncedisi Mayisela – 80 per cent; Zacharia Mthethwa – 64.5 per cent; Nozipho Mamba – 63.5 per cent. In the second recruitment exercise conducted by SAMKHO, the Board recommended Kenneth Maziya for the CEO post.
RESPONSIBLE
Again, Princess Sikhanyiso did not endorse the appointment of Maziya.
Section 8 (1) of the Public Enterprise Act, 1989, provides that the Board, which is referred to as the governing body is responsible for the nomination of the CEO.
It reads: “Except in the case of the University of Swaziland (Eswatini), the governing body of each category A Public Enterprise shall nominate the chief executive officer who shall be appointed, or who may be dismissed by the minister responsible acting in consultation with the Standing Committee.”
In the second SAMKHO interviews, Maziya and Mayisela scored highest as they both attained 83.3 per cent. SAMKHO stated that if Maziya was not appointed, Mayisela should be considered for the job or alternatively Phesheya Dube who became third.
According to sources, the final interview results produced by the second consultant were as follows –
Kenneth Maziya – 83.3 per cent; Mncedisi Mayisela – 83.3 per cent; Phesheya Dube – 64.6 per cent; Titus Mavimbela – 46.7 per cent. Despite the aforementioned interview results and the previous one produced by KQ Consulting (Pty) Ltd, the ministry reportedly went for the USA-based candidate.
It was not clear if Dlamini, who is based in the USA, applied for the job but did not attend the interviews conducted by the two consulting firms.
LEARNT
It has since been learnt that he worked for Eswatini TV for a few months in the 1990s. He was in the Engineering Department.
He comes from the Prince Mahlalengangeni household. He is obviously the minister’s close relative.
Investigations by the Times SUNDAY revealed that SCOPE rejected
Dlamini on the following grounds –
The Ministry of ICT forwarded a candidate who did not even participate in the recruitment process;
The appointment was not supported by a Board resolution. It was not attached to the recommendation;
There was no recruitment report from the consultant attached.
When he was asked at that time why a name of a person who did not sit for the job interview was submitted to SCOPE for appointment, Masuku, the Principal Secretary in the Ministry of ICT, said ‘Mlamuli Dlamini’ was the only candidate who was qualified for the job.
He said the Board considered the requirement for the minimum qualifications, and sidelined him for the interviews. Therefore, he said, in the Ministry of ICT’s analysis, it was not a fair recruitment process.
RESPONSIBILITY
He explained that it was indeed the responsibility of the Board to recommend the CEO to the minister.
However, he pointed out that it was also the responsibility of the ministry to do due diligence.
The principal secretary alleged that most of the interviewed candidates did not meet the requisite minimum qualifications.
In short, he said they failed the ‘acid test’.
Masuku said the ministry was left with an unanswered question: “Was the consultant doing his job independently or was he working under someone’s influence?”
The controlling officer said the minister would not be made a rubber stamp. Masuku had summed it up by saying that the recruitment of the