Motau says process to appoint him as chair of SETA board selection panel was never finalised

CAPE TOWN - Advocate Terry Motau, the man named as the chairperson of the panel selecting Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA) board members by Higher Education Minister Nobuhle Nkabane, said that his appointment never materialised.

Motau said that Minister Nkabane may have had an intention to appoint him, but that process was never finalised because he had not been briefed by an attorney as required and was never part of any panel discussions.

He said that Nkabane knew this, but she still went ahead and named him in a letter to the portfolio committee.

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Motau has moved to clarify his non-involvement in the SETA board selection process, which saw several African National Congress (ANC)-aligned individuals appointed to boards, saying he learnt of his appointment through media reports.

Motau said that he informed Nkabane of his inability to chair the panel in a letter that preceded the minister's statement naming him as chairperson.

"In other words, when the minister wrote to the portfolio committee and said that I was the chairperson, she knew the true facts that I wasn’t."

He said the minister also gave him a call, saying that her office had tried to contact him.

"I said: 'No, nobody did. Nobody tried to call me. We can convene a meeting, minister, and we can try to clarify that.'"

While Motau said that he would not be taking any further action and just wanted to clarify the facts, the portfolio committee would be acting against Nkabane for misleading it on the so-called independence of the panel.