New faces for ICASA

The regulator will be filled with new faces over the next 12 months, which provides government the chance to bring a firmer hand to communication regulation.

Over the weekend, Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Communications head, Ismail Vadi, distributed an advert for the four councillors expected to leave the regulator this year. The position of chairman, currently held by Paris Mashile, is among the four positions up for grabs.

Mashile was installed as the regulator's head by then president Thabo Mbeki in 2005, having already worked at the regulator for a year. His reign at ICASA has not been an easy fight, and Mashile has had to face some of the more dramatic changes in the industry.

The chairman has indicated to ITWeb in the past that he will not put his hat in the ring to continue as the regulator's head. However, he was not contactable this morning to confirm his decision.

ICASA has long maintained a reputation of being weak-willed and easily swayed by industry players attempting to dodge regulation. A new chairman provides the country an opportunity to bring in an industry stalwart with a stronger hand.

Julia Lamberth, Ernst & Young's telecoms sector leader, says what is now needed is someone with fresh eyes that has industry experience and can provide a new look at the regulatory environment.

She says there is no doubt that the industry needs regulation, and someone with a practical mind bringing practical solutions to both broadcasting and telecoms would be a boon for the country. “It is a good opportunity to have someone who understands the industry installed into that position,” she notes.

Another analyst, who asked to remain unnamed, agrees that industry experience is now a must. “Alan Knott-Craig has thrown his hat into the ring several times. But I am not sure it will happen anymore.”

The analyst says Knott-Craig would make an excellent addition to the council; however, the recent media exposure around his contract and retainer with Vodacom may well have destroyed the possibility of taking up the position.

Former Department of Communications deputy minister, Roy Padayachie, has also come up on the radar as a possible candidate to replace Mashile. “When he was in the department, he had a reputation for listening to all sides and making an effort to understand the issues. He might well be the best person for the job.”

Much to the industry's disappointment, Padayachie was overlooked in the latest elections as an MP, and a possible replacement for the late communications minister, Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri.

Dominic Cull, regulatory specialist at Ellipsis Regulatory Solutions, says there is a possibility that like Mashile, the appointment will be made from the inside.

“I am not really convinced there is a clear-cut suitable candidate who can take on leading the work of council; they will need to be extremely strong in ensuring that ICASA has sufficient space to perform its mandate within the context of being squeezed between government and industry,” he explains.

Cull says one such candidate could be councillor in the telecoms space, Thabo Makhakhe. “He is obviously intelligent and careful to consider his statements. He has good industry experience and has worked in government for some time and his term only expires in June 2012.”

The other positions up for grabs will only come later in the year, with competition councillor Robert Nkuna and complaints councillor Jacobus van Rooyen both expected to leave in September and Brenda Ntombela, consumer affairs councillor, expected to leave in October.

Vadi says nominations must include people who are “committed to fairness, freedom of expression, openness and accountability, must be representative of a broad cross-section of the population of the Republic and possess suitable qualifications”.

Many industry watchers are concerned that the appointment will be political, and not include an experienced industry specialist.