MPs demand action over irregularly appointed National Skills Authority chair

The appointment of the chairperson of the National Skills Authority (NSA) has been flagged as irregular and potentially corrupt by members of parliament, as the candidate does not have the required qualifications for the role.

Asanda Luwaca was appointed into the position in May by the then minister of higher education and training, Nobuhle Nkabane. President Cyril Ramaphosa fired Nkabane in July after she was accused of political interference in public appointments. She was under scrutiny, allegedly lying about the process of Sector Education and Training Authorities (Seta) board chair appointments.

A government gazette states that the candidate appointed to the role of National Skills Authority chairperson should have an academic qualification at National Qualifications Framework (NQF) level nine (master’s degree) from a recognised institution.

 Records show that Luwaca holds only a BA Honours degree in political science and government from the University of South Africa, after obtaining a BA in Politics from the University of Johannesburg.

She previously served as executive chairperson of the National Youth Development Agency.

uMkhonto weSizwe MP Sihle Ngubane told the Mail & Guardian that the party had picked up on how Nkabane had handled several matters inappropriately in the department, including this irregular appointment.

He said the party had raised the issue in a letter to the current Higher Education Minister, Buti Manamela, providing all the relevant evidence.

“We have written to the minister and said ‘this is wrong’. The appointment is illegal, and it needs to be withdrawn, cancelled, and they need to find an amicable way of redoing it or correcting it because she was onboarded in a wrong way,” Ngubane said.

Manamela has himself also come under fire over his appointment of administrators to three troubled Sector Education and Training Authorities.

Luwaca’s appointment deliberately excluded other qualifying candidates,  Ngubane said.

“All of a sudden, they hire a person who has NQF level seven or eight, which means she has disadvantaged all other people who are qualified for the job, who could have fitted the profile, who could have applied for the job, who could have competitively submitted their CV.”

In the MK party letter, Ngubane said the appointment was irregular, flawed and potentially corrupt. “This appointment seems to have disregarded the official minimum qualification criteria as set out in the government gazette and, if substantiated, undermines the principles of transparency, fairness and merit in public sector recruitment.”

He also accused the former minister of “political patronage and cadre deployment,” as Luwaca had previously been affiliated with the ANC parliamentary caucus. Ngubane added that the appointment was not only unethical but may represent a breach of legal obligations under the Public Service Act and other governance frameworks, which “poses significant risk to institutional integrity”.

“It’s obvious the minister bulldozed officials and instructed them to do the wrong things,” he said.

Luwaca and the executive officer of the National Skills Authority, Zamokwakhe Khuzwayo, referred the M&G’s request for comment to the department of higher education and training.

The department said it noted the concerns raised regarding compliance with the government gazette outlining the qualification requirements for the appointment of the NSA chairperson.

“Minister Manamela, who assumed office subsequent to both the publication of the Gazette and the appointment process in question, has accordingly directed the relevant officials within the department to verify the veracity of the information placed before him regarding the appointment of the chairperson,” spokesperson to the minister, Matshepo Seedat, told the M&G.

The measure is intended to ensure that the appointment process fully complies with the legislative and regulatory requirements that define and guide the functioning of the National Skills Authority, Seedat said.Any further steps or decisions will be based on the findings and recommendations emerging from the verification process, she added.

“Once the verification process has been finalised, the minister will communicate the outcome and any further steps that may be taken.”

MPs are expecting Manamela to withdraw Luwaca’s appointment and restart the process from scratch so that other people can compete, Ngubane said.