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Roy Padayachie is keeping us in touchWhen Roy Padayachie’s tenure as Communications minister started, the government’s relationship with the information and communication technology (ICT) sector was in tatters and morale within the department under strain.
In his first meeting with the media after his appointment, Padayachie committed the department to working smarter, harder and faster.
True to this word, he moved with astonishing (almost broadband-like) speed in his initiative to restore the goodwill of the ICT sector.
Padayachie’s meeting with executives of 30 of South Africa’s largest technology companies at the end of February helped to establish much-needed discourse between the government and the private sector.
It was not a mere gesture of goodwill or simply a ceasefire after a damaging court case, but heralded the dawn of a new era.
The new minister invited the ICT sector to partner with the Ministry to drive the agenda of progressive development in the sector.
Padayachie’s political career was shaped by the fusion between the Black Consciousness Movement, the Natal Indian Congress, and his own painful memories of the destructive influence of the Group Areas Act to the strong bond between white and black in Clairwood in KwaZulu-Natal.
His childhood was filled with fond memories of his father’s sense of humour, and his mother’s affection.
His father, Lutchmana Padayachie, a shopkeeper in Clairwood, and his uncle were identical twins.
Padayachie and his cousin were often subjected to a game called “find your father”.
Almost inevitably, they found the wrong one and ended up in the arms of their uncle, much to the amusement of Padayachie Sr.
Padayachie’s real first name is Radhakrishna, an important god in the Hindu deity, and one that is surrounded by beautiful girls, explains the minister.
“He is the one god that is always taken good care of,” he says with a mischievous smile.
His mother, Ankamma, came to the rescue of Padayachie’s friends, future generations of journalists, political friends and foes by giving him a shorter nickname.
She loved the classic cowboy films, specifically the hero, Roy Rogers. So she affectionately called the young Radhakrishna “Roy”.
When she was particularly fond of him, he simply became “Rogers”.
Radhakrishna still appears in official documents of the Ministry of Communications, but Roy is a household name preferred by particularly radio journalists, rather than the tongue-twister Radhakrishna.
His childhood ambition was to be a medical doctor, but because he did not automatically qualify, he took a secondary route via BSc and majored in Microbiology and Chemistry.
Subsequently, he won a Shell international scholarship, which afforded him the opportunity to do a master’s degree in London.
But the logistics of a master’s degree in Microbiology at the University of Redding – too far away from his alma mater, the ANC office in London – did not appeal to him.
Instead, Padayachie pursued a master’s degree in Farm Business Management and Marketing at the University of London.
Even after a distinguished academic career, the political challenges awaiting him as minister of Communications in 2010 were vast.
When Padayachie ventured into the new role, it resembled a cowboy visiting town to buy stocks, only to draw fire from all quarters.
In-fighting, ugly spats between high-profiled colleagues and a destabilised environment greeted him upon arrival, but he stunned all-comers with his reaction.
He stabilised a turbulent and potentially hostile atmosphere within the Ministry and the department and won the hearts of his subordinates with his integrity and courageous leadership.
Padayachie furthermore announced a turnaround strategy and cracked the whip on sloppy public servants.
“The first thing I had to do, was to restore the self-confidence of the staff. They were so demoralised, so split in many ways, and a lack of motivation was quite a strong feature,” he recalls.
“We had many talented people in the department, but they were not working together, no longer inspired and committed. We had to build their self-confidence and re-establish the department as a centre of authority in ICT matters.”
Padayachie introduced new ideas to boost the morale and the confidence of the staff.
“We have put in place the platforms for partnership between the government, the industry and other segments of the public service,” he says.
Meeting the executive of 30 of South Africa’s largest technology companies signalled the start of Padayachie’s new broadband plan for South Africa, which includes the dream to provide every single South African with an Internet address.
“Continuous dialogue is an important ingredient to ensure we are openly available for partnerships with companies, but also to assist ICT companies,” he adds.
Padayachie called for a partnership between the government and private companies in the establishment of a five- to 10-year vision for the development of the ICT sector in South Africa. “It is not only for business, it is a multi-stakeholder involvement,” he notes.
He invited the industry to engage in a national debate on the possibilities of a new economic growth plan for the South African economy. “The New Growth Plan must provide bold, imaginative and effective strategies to create millions of new jobs in South Africa,” he says.
“In our estimation, the communications industry is a R138-billion industry right now; but by 2020, that could have evolved to
R251 billion.
“Industry could play a major part in skills development, introducing innovative technology and opening up new areas for production and manufacturing,” adds Padayachie.
“Digital technologies such as broadband are increasingly becoming an instrument to achieve national development goals.”
The Communications department will work on an integrated national broadband plan to ensure the country has an “efficient, competitive and responsive ICT infrastructure” which, he says, is “critical to propel South Africa into a knowledge-based economy”.
Padayachie and his Ministry aim at improving the broadband penetration to match that of emerging giants such as India, Brazil
and China.
“The department is talking about a 10% penetration rate over the next three years,” he says.
“We have established a broadband implementation working group, and believe we can achieve that 10% if we construct a creative partnership between public and private
sector entities.
“There are a number of proposals we are considering on how to give rural communities greater access to broadband and the Internet,” Padayachie adds. “We have received some ideas from cellular companies on how this can be done: We are looking at a more effective role for Sentech and Broadband Infraco, and possibly a more vigorous one for Telkom.”
Many columnists have lamented the inability of South Africa to penetrate the rural communities. The goodwill is obvious, but the failure of the private sector to deliver telecommunications services to all has been lambasted.
“It is not a time to lament the failures, but of engaging in constructive partnerships to do it (establishing telecoms infrastructures in rural areas),” notes Padayachie. “There is a willingness on the part of the private sector to do that; it is now seeing the rural areas as a profitable area for investment, and government is keen to encourage that.
“Our communications plan is to help uplift the most disadvantaged in the communities.
“We have to break isolation completely. The more people have information available to them, the more empowered they will be.
“We hope the most disadvantaged of these people would be the recipients and beneficiaries of our subsidised setup boxes, or would go to a knowledge box in a village and pick up Internet mails,” he says.
Cellphones are becoming smarter and cheaper, and people can even get access to the Internet on them, which would give the poorest of the poor an Internet as well as an e-mail address.
Padayachie’s short-term goal is to succeed in establishing the basis for the inclusion of vast rural communities in the communications infrastructure. “We would also like to see the ICT sector to thrive economically, and that companies active in this industry would record robust growth,” he adds.
All these grand schemes and plans can be laid to waste because of inefficient public servants, and a dysfunctional public broadcaster.
Padayachie is well aware of the many potential pitfalls.
He has stated his goal of raising a new core of competent, caring and committed social servants: “We must get down to the reappraisal of values that drive public servants and we have to change the culture of work in
the department.
“People have to learn that they are here in service of the people, and they have to deliver on that commitment. Taking a job in a state machinery is not an entitlement – it is one that requires service and caring for the people.”
Padayachie’s personal political mantra is: Never forget you serve the people, and that is the reason for your existence. Be humble, never let arrogance and power get into
your head.
Be consultative and never be afraid to make your own decision, and keep your feet on the ground.
The public broadcaster, the SABC, has been scrutinised intensely in the recent past.
His Master’s Voice, as it is referred to, was under severe financial stress some time ago, while its board’s failure to install proper governance procedures was well documented.
Furthermore, the board was almost paralysed by in-fighting.
Padayachie says there is currently greater stability in the public broadcaster. The critical level is at executive management where all the vacancies will be filled soon.
The Communications department will do a skills audit, retrain some people and reposition them without having to revert to retrenchment and the termination of posts.
“We want to make sure that the SABC has won back confidence of the people, and that it becomes the centrepiece of cohesion in the country,” says the minister.
He has commented on the regulatory body, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa), whose public confidence had waned at a stage.
“Icasa can do with an injection of greater skills, and could be assisted tremendously if its budget were improved,” notes Padayachie.
He has furthermore raised a question or two about the quality of local cellphone networks, lamenting the fact that five to seven calls per day are dropped at times. “I want to engage with the cellphone networks about it,” he says.
The cellphone costs in South Africa, once considered to be among the highest globally, will be addressed on Padayachie’s watch.
“There is still room for improvement. I know there is a collective commitment by the industry to reduce costs, but we are keen to investigate it further,” he adds.
Now, if Padayachie could achieve cheaper cellphone costs, millions of relieved South African citizens would affectionately call him Rogers… ▲
Fanie Heyns
