Dear Sir,
It was with the utmost dismay that I read a report in the Sunday Times of 28 January 2007 in which the Chairman of the Independent Broadcast Authority of South Africa (ICASA), Mr. Paris Mashile, blatantly proclaims that he is “an anarchist”. The article is available on the internet at
http://www.sundaytimes.co.za/article.aspx?ID=368897.
It is my understanding that ICASA is a statuatory body whose chairman and councillors are appointed by government, and is tasked with regulating various aspects of the communications industry in South Africa.
It is also my understanding that an anarchist is a person who believes in and tries to bring about anarchy which is a ideology characterized by the absence of government and the promotion of a state of disorder.
It is incomprehensible to me that a self-proclaimed anarchist can be appointed to lead a government institution or to remain in such a position once it becomes known what his personal philosophy is.
Anarchism is in diametric opposition to the principles and intent of the constitution of this democratic republic which many people struggled for a long time to establish.
It is now clear to me that the current inability of ICASA to perform its mandate can be directly attributed to its Chairman, Mr. Mashile, pursuing an anarchistic personal agenda to the detriment of ICASA, the government and ordinary citizens at large.
Under Mr. Mashile's chaotic stewardship ICASA has seen:
- the nearly year-long suspension and eventual resignation of its CEO, Ms. Manche leaving an administrative vacuum, effectively crippling the internal bureaucracy during that period,
- an exodus of seemingly its entire senior management team, some after reportedly clashing with Mr. Mashile,
- missed deadlines and late promulgation of regulations like the often delayed implementation of Mobile Number Portability,
- obsfucation and a stubborn unwillingness to provide clarity into the intent of regulations published such as in the case around the recent ADSL regulations,
- a blatant disregard of the authority of the Portfolio Committee on Communications, as evidenced by the procrastination in providing documents and information for example the request for copies of the exit interviews of senior ICASA staff, and
- the approval of tariff increases of around 10%, well over the rate of inflation, on the most basic fixed line telephony services. Tariffs that put fixed line services out of the reach of most South Africans, even though affordable basic access is a stated goal of government.
Mr. Mashile has had a personal hand in all of these events, and they all bear the hallmarks of anarchism.
As a concerned registered voter that has to deal, on a daily basis, with the chaos and rampant profiteering in the telecommunications industry overseen by ICASA under Mr. Mashile's hand, I ask that you investigate these matters and take the appropriate actions. Having the matter discussed by the Portfolio Committee on Communications or raised during an open session of Parliament would be a good start.
If Mr. Mashile is indeed an anarchist, then he cannot possibly hold any publicly appointed office, as this represents a conflict of interest of the most fundamental sort.
I and many voters like me will certainly not tolerate anyone in public office who proclaim that they are dedicated to anarchy.
Thank you for your attention in this matter.
Sincerely yours,
