Diko, Malatsi lock horns over plans to exempt depts from using SITA

CAPE TOWN - The State Information Technology Agency (SITA) is the centre of another showdown between Parliament committee chairperson, Khusela Diko, and Communications and Digital Technologies Minister Solly Malatsi.

On Monday, Diko raised concerns over what she said were intentions by Malatsi to devolve powers away from SITA to allow departments the right to procure their own IT services, a move Diko has described as anti-transformation.

She said that Malatsi planned to do this through regulations that would exempt departments from using SITA, but stated that this went against the law.

Diko said that Minister Malatsi indicated in a parliamentary response that he was in the process of gazetting regulations that, in effect, would "devolve powers from SITA to departments".

Diko said that she was aware of operational weaknesses at SITA and how departments had become increasingly frustrated with SITA's performance, but any move to get departments to move away from SITA would only cripple it and "compound the problem".

"Now for the minister to intend to gazette regulations that essentially exempt departments from using SITA in it procurement is where the problems."

She said that the SITA Act currently doesn't empower the minister to do so.

"The SITA Act is prescriptive, and the minister has got no authority whatsoever to be able to circumvent the law through regulations."

Malatsi said he was still studying Diko's portfolio committee statement and would respond in due course.

In February, the department told the portfolio committee that last year, Malatsi issued proposed amendments to SITA Act regulations.

But the feedback from government departments was that the regulations were in conflict with the act.