South Africa’s mobile operators have welcomed the newly appointed minister of telecommunications and postal services and minister of communications, although third operator Cell C said further clarity is needed on the respective responsibilities of the newly restructured ministries.
HumanIPO reported yesterday president Jacob Zuma announced his new cabinet, creating a new Ministry of Telecommunications and Postal Services to be headed up by former minister of state security Siyabonga Cwele, with the separate Department of Communications to include the telecommunications industry regulator within its remit.
South Africa’s third operator Cell C told HumanIPO the respective responsibilities of the restructured ministries is unclear, and further elaboration is needed on how the two ministries will interact.
“Cell C would like to congratulate Minister Siyabonga Cwele and Deputy Minister Hlengiwe Mkhize on their appointment to the Ministry of Telecommunications and Postal Services. The company likewise extends its congratulations to Minister Faith Muthambi and Deputy Minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams on their appointment in the Communications Ministry,” Jose dos Santos, chief executive officer (CEO) of Cell C, told HumanIPO.
“Cell C will engage with the leadership of both ministries to gain some clarity on the various responsibilities of each ministry in the governance of the telecommunications industry and ICT in general, especially given that the industry regulator ICASA is in a different ministry to that of telecommunications operators,” he said.
“Cell C is confident that this restructuring of government will not hamper the MTRs regulatory process currently underway and that other initiates including digital migration and high-demand spectrum allocation will remain a priority.”
A Vodacom spokesperson told HumanIPO the operator is currently “working to better understand the roles of each ministry”.
The country’s second operator MTN said it hopes ties between industry and the ministries will be strong.
“We congratulate both ministers on their respective appointments,” said Zunaid Bulbulia, CEO of MTN South Africa.
“We’re hoping to engage with the ministers in the very near future and to build a progressive working relationship.”
Telkom welcomed the new ministers, but could not offer any insight as to how the two ministries will co-work.
“Telkom welcomes the new minister of telecommunication and postal services and the minister of communication. The company wishes them well in their new roles and looks forward to working with both of them. Telkom is not in a position to comment on how the two ministries will work at this stage as it is still early days,” the operator said.
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