The sitting held by parliament’s portfolio committee on Friday to probe higher education minister Nobuhle Nkabane’s faux panel has left the fingerprints of controversial businessman Luvo Makasi all over the scandal.
He is not employed by the higher education department but is the one whom Nkabane entrusted to recruit legal heavyweight Terry Motau to chair the recommendation panel for Sector Education and Training Authority (Seta) chairpersons.
Besides that of Minister Nkabane, Makasi’s name was perhaps the most mentioned during the meeting, as MPs tried to understand his ties to the higher education department.
While MPs proposed that he be hauled before Parliament alongside Nkabane on Tuesday, the higher education portfolio committee chair, Tebogo Letsie, canned the suggestion.
“I do not know a Luvo Makasi who works for the department. It will be very worrying that a person who does not work at the department approached the advocate. It does not make sense,” said a concerned Letsie.
“What is important now is to first question the minister and see if she can give answers about this Luvo Makasi. Remember, Luvo is not an MP, so it would seem as if we were jumping the gun,” Letsie said.
Motau clueless about appointment
Motau denies having been formally appointed into the disputed panel but lays bare manoeuvres that were employed to constitute the panel.
According to Motau, he was once called into a meeting by deputy director-general Rhulani Ngwenya and advisor to the minister Asisipho Solani. However, when the meeting eventually happened, Solani was accompanied by Makasi instead. Ngwenya was nowhere to be seen.
During the meeting, Motau claimed to have known Makasi prior to the meeting, as he was once a client of his. He confirms that they had a preliminary conversation about the minister’s intention to appoint him to the board prior to the meeting.
“Mr. Makasi had indicated that he was assisting the minister, and that was the explanation for his participation and attendance at the meeting. He was there as part of the ministry’s team that was there to address me.
“I would assume he would have been there in the capacity of assisting the ministry or else he would not know about the meeting convened.”
What further raised eyebrows was the chief director of Seta coordination, Mabuza Ngubane, openly admitting to MPs that he only recently learnt about Makasi’s involvement in the process.
“I do not know Mr. Makasi as an employee of the department. In fact, I heard for the first time when I read about it,” said Ngubane.
ANC National spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri said Makasi must not be associated with the party. According to Bhengu-Motsiri, “we are so accustomed to South Africans attributing wrongdoing to the ANC even when it is not justified, even when those people that are participating in the state system are just South Africans that are beneficiaries of the ANC’s transformation policies.”
“I do not know if Luvo Makasi is a comrade in terms of the constitution of the ANC and whether he acts on any instruction from the ANC. I am certain he does not act on any instruction of the ANC; therefore, he cannot be called a cadre deployed.”
