A 14th annual salary cheque has become so standard among the communication regulator's staff, that only 12 of its 335 employees did not receive one during the 2008/9 financial year, Parliament heard yesterday.
Members of Parliament's financial watchdog committee, the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa), listened in astonishment as it was told the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) paid out R7.9 million in bonuses during the 2008/9 financial year, even though there was no performance management system in place.
“I want to know how bonuses could be paid when there was no way in which to measure the performance of these staff members?” ANC MP Mandla Mbili asked.
His question was asked in greater detail by other Scopa members, who also wanted to know how ICASA CEO Karabo Motlana's salary was increased without having had his performance measured.
ICASA chairman Paris Mashile said the reason the performance management system for the CEO and staff was not in place, was because the council did not have one either.
“He [Motlana] did not have a performance management system in place, because it is predicated on that the council did not have one in place. This has created a dysfunctional cascading of the system, because they cannot take out of council's performance management system what they need for their performance management systems,” he said.
Motlana, however, said he had tried to get council to give him and the staff some kind of performance management system.
“I don't want to allow the impression that there was some insubordination on my part. I did ask council for one in September [2008], after I had joined.”
Motlana said 14th cheques had become part of the ICASA staff expectations and so a system using an independent outside assessor had been initiated. He also acknowledged that employees were being paid the performance bonuses on top of their 13thcheques; although this did not necessary apply to management.
Mashile described Motlana's performance as CEO as “adequate” as he had done what was expected of him.
Scopa chairman Nelson Godi commented that he could not understand how ICASA could have reached such a situation between council and the board, and added that the authority would appear before the committee in the future.
Barry Wheeler, executive corporate auditor at the auditor-general of SA, partially came to ICASA's aid. He noted that, because the ministry of communications had not completed its performance management system for the council, it can be understood how the system broke down.
“The auditor-general's reports have made it very clear in a number of environments that the tone for good governance starts at the top. The top must set the pace and this then cascades down through the rest of the organisation. If this does not happen, then there is no chance of getting a clean audit report,” he said.
Wheeler also pointed out that the Public Finance Management Act made it clear that the CEO of an organisation is the accounting officer. In its description of this role, there was also an indication of performance expectations, he commented.
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