Malatsi to appear before Parliament committee over new draft ICT policy
This, after Malatsi's department published a policy directive for public comment last week, sparking speculation that government had been swayed to bend the rules for Musk.
If passed, the policy will loosen Affirmative Action laws requiring foreign investors in telecoms to sell 30% of equity in their local entity to historically disadvantaged groups in order to qualify for operating licences.
The Department of Communications and Digital Technologies said the proposed policy is not meant to subvert the country's transformation agenda.
Instead, it would include a clause for companies to take part in equity equivalence programmes.
This would see foreign firms invest in programmes geared towards equity, skills development and economic inclusion.
In a statement published on X, communications portfolio committee chairperson Khusela Diko, said Malatsi must come before parliament to account for what she said appears to be a contravention of the Electronic Communications Act.
Diko further described it as attempts to circumvent the law through policy directives not worth the paper they are written on and a glaring invitation for litigation.
In a reply on X, Malatsi said he would honour the invitation for Tuesday's meeting.
ALSO READ:
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
eNCA
41 minutes ago
- eNCA
Simelane defends budget amid calls for removal
PRETORIA - Human Settlements Minister Thembi Simelane is defending her department's latest R34-billion budget, which she tabled in Parliament on Wednesday, amid growing criticism from opposition parties some of whom are calling for her removal. The minister has promised decisive action to tackle the country's housing backlogs and to upgrade informal settlements. Simelane says one of their key priorities is to address project stoppages, which have slowed progress. She acknowledged that growth in delivery has been inactive, but insists the department is committed to turning the tide.
IOL News
an hour ago
- IOL News
IRR warns Parliament against expropriating SARB
So extreme is the Bill's threat of expropriation without compensation that even the government and members of the ANC have voiced public opposition to it. The Institute of Race Relations has made written and oral submissions to Parliament in opposition to the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) Amendment Bill. The Bill, tabled by Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema in 2018, is moving forward to a committee vote on 'desirability'. The IRR warned that it is undesirable, uneconomical, unfunded, unconsidered, and unconstitutional. To start, the Bill expropriates the shareholders of the SARB without compensation, which is a direct violation of constitutionally protected property rights. The shares are worth an estimated R20 million, so no one can seriously claim that the Bill would expropriate these shares without compensation to save the fisc money. Rather, the real purpose of such an exercise is to try to set a precedent that any shares in the country can be expropriated without compensation, including trillions of rands worth of stock and bond securities that depend on SARB's prudent monetary management. So extreme is the Bill's threat of expropriation without compensation that even the government and members of the ANC have voiced public opposition to it. Treasury official Christopher Axelson, representing the government, spoke out at length in opposition to this danger and other dangerous aspects of the Bill before Parliament. Says IRR Fellow Gabriel Crouse: 'The effort to expropriate rural landowners in the hinterland is death to property rights by a thousand cuts. Expropriating SARB shareholders without compensation poses the same threat, only faster, like an atom bomb.' SARB's 802 shareholders make very little money from those shares, with dividends limited to R1,000 per annum, but do get to elect seven of the SARB's 15 directors. This decentralised, minority input provides a public-private engagement mechanism that has helped implement the 'primary object' of the SARB, which is 'to protect the value of the currency', according to the Constitution. SARB is arguably the most successful government institution at hitting its target. Over the last quarter of a century, it has largely succeeded in maintaining inflation within the 3% - 6% target range that was nominated for it by the then-minister of finance back in 2000. Most of South Africa's thousands of other organs of state have, by stark contrast, been riddled with ongoing state capture, often taking them well beyond the point of bankruptcy. Most organisations where the state is the 'sole shareholder' are so badly off that President Cyril Ramaphosa's first, second, and third presidential terms have included repeated calls for 'reform' through 'public-private partnerships' that increase the role of the private sector. So why, in this local environment, would anyone want to make the same overburdened state the 'sole shareholder' of one of the only bastions of excellence, namely SARB? Malema, the Bill's sponsor, leaves no room for mystery about it. Malema openly calls for total nationalisation of the land, banks, and mines, which would be significantly easier if the SARB were captured, and forced to abandon its mandate temporarily by stocking rampant inflation. That sudden loosening of monetary policy would produce what luminary SARB Governor Lesetja Kganyago has warned would be a 'deep depression'. It would also create enough chaos to facilitate a deeper round of state capture. Crouse concludes: 'This is a test for the GNU. The MK, EFF, and Action SA signalled support for the Bill in Parliament. If the ANC joins those parties in keeping the Bill alive to spite its investment-friendly GNU partners, this will damage government unity. More importantly, it dangles a threat over everyone's prospects, and the lifesavings of those who have any.' Institute of Race Relations I Joburg
The South African
an hour ago
- The South African
Shivambu's consultations underway amid MK tension
Former uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party secretary-general Floyd Shivambu says his consultation process is well underway. The Mayibuye Consultation Process, which was launched on Thursday, 19 June, seeks to assess whether there is a need to form a new political party in South Africa. Shivambu said citizens should rest assured that the process will build a revolutionary movement. In a post on X, the former Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) member shared that a meeting with the Mayibuye National Consultation Team (NCT) took place on Wednesday, 2 July. Shivambu added that the plan of action, including provincial visits and sectoral consultations, will be announced this weekend. Eugene Ndlangamandla, the MK regional coordinator for the uMkhanyakude district in KwaZulu-Natal, resigned from the party. He stated that he will assist in the Mayibuye Consultation Process. In a letter, doing its rounds on social media, Ndlangamandla criticised the MK Party and described his journey as tough. 'I have observed that unfair treatment of members is a significant problem within the party. MK seems to operate more like a family and friends' business rather than a political party to liberate black people,' said Ndlangamandla. He also claimed that there is a lack of discipline among party members, with some using derogatory language and dishonesty running the organisation. The MK Party continues to face allegations of internal tensions and infighting. Letters have been circulating, with the party's parliamentary leader John Hlophe's signature, on social media. They accused members of Parliament Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla and national spokesperson, Nhlamulo Ndhlela of being disruptive. Another letter also claimed that MK Party's chief whip in Parliament, Colleen Makhubele, has been removed from her position. However, Ndhlela claimed the letters are fake. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 11. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news
