• 9 Comments
  

Former SABC boss Kanyisiwe Mkonza has made an amazing admission. As reported on the front page of today’s Times, she told Parliament: “I do agree, I suck as a leader”.
Which explains why her board has provided pathetic leadership and overseen the decline of a cornerstone public institution.
But Mkonza’s statement raises far more questions. Why did she take the job if she knew she couldn’t do it? Why did she stick it out as the crises mounted?
The answer comes to the core of the problem with the public service – and with some private institutions.
There is a belief among South Africans that anyone can do anything, they just need to be appointed. If they can’t do it, they will get others to do it for them and still take the credit.
But the real world is a harsh judge. Incompetence cannot hide for long, especially when a major institution is very publicly in decline.
It is time to start recognising the unsexy skills that make things work when it comes to positions of power. The ability to anticipate, manage and resolve issues before they expand into major problems requires a level of organisational skill and maturity on the part of the person responsible.
This sort of skill is often absent in political appointees because they are beholden to their appointers and therefore not empowered to act decisively.
The next chair of the SABC board had better be someone who has real management and business experience or the corporation will sink without a trace in the face of competition.

Related posts:

  1. All the WHAM! BAM! and THWACK! at the SABC
  2. Now what about the SABC bored?
  3. ANC’s final list for SABC board – full text
  4. Cosatu rejects SABC Board – full text
  5. Time to switch off the SABC’s lights

 

Comments

 

Larry Goodfella

June 24, 2009 at 11:19 am

Even the ANC cannot hide for long. Their incompetence is already shining through.

 

Kabelo

June 24, 2009 at 12:34 pm

So much for Zuma being a new broom that will sweep away corruption and install competent leaders and managers to run the affairs of para-statals.

Another election promise that has proven to be nothing but a cynical lie to persuade the voter fodder to vote ANC.

 

Nkosinathi King of this blog

June 24, 2009 at 1:09 pm

It is very nice to see peasants making themselves useful by criticising the ANC.

 

Kwanda

June 24, 2009 at 1:26 pm

Kabelo

Mkhonza was not appointed by Zuma. Please read the article properly.

 

Kwanda

June 24, 2009 at 1:38 pm

Kabelo

Mkhonza was appointed 18-months ago.Zuma was not president but Mbeki was president. So the fact that the board is being dissolved now,indicates that parliament means business.

 

Kabelo

June 24, 2009 at 2:05 pm

@Kwanda: I did not claim that Zuma appointed Mkonza. But I am sure that Zuma has not exercised his own mind to bring order to the SABC that has rampant crime, corruption an nepotism at all levels overseen by a bunch of idiots who have no real qualifications other than they have poliitical connections.

The SABC like SAA has become a millstone around our necks and during the worst recession in decades, it should be ruthlessly trimmed down and sold to private operators. How much are you prepared to gamble that nobody in the current ANC regime will take this unpalatable medicine?

 

Larry Goodfella

June 24, 2009 at 3:44 pm

Kwanda

The ANCBC is being dissolved because it has run itself insolvent, and employees are threatening to shut it down. Whether it is Zuma or Mbeki in charge (not), the ANC is useless.

 

Shaq

November 2, 2009 at 9:08 am

As long as the following saying is employed “deploy yesterday and capacitate tomorrow” in the public sector our beloved country will be Disneyland or better yet BlamingLand

 

Shaq

November 2, 2009 at 9:19 am

leadership is action not position.i now understand why one of the gr8test writers in the state said”there’s no difference between the Republicans and Democrats”. just like in our country theres no difference who our president is.

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