R2K demands an open and transparent appointment process for new SARS boss!

The Right2Know Campaign notes the announcement by Treasury outlining the process for the appointment of the SARS Commissioner.  Treasury has expressed desire to follow the Nugent Commission of Inquiry recommendations in the appointment procedure. The Nugent report also makes significant recommendations on the process being open and transparent.

The appointment of the head of the revenue is a matter of crucial public interest.

To this end, we wish to raise the following concerns:

•         Where is the shortlist of candidates selected by the President? (according to the Nugent Report – “ …following the selection by the President of the candidate or candidates it should be followed by an open and transparent process for the purposes of providing input to the President, or the Minister, as to the suitability for office of the candidate”). The public must know who is on the shortlist BEFORE the panel begins its work.
•         As was the case with the National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) interviews, R2K demands that the proceedings of the selection panel be open – through public broadcasting. This is directly in line with the Nugent Commission’s recommendation that the process should be “open and transparent”.
•         That the recommendations of the panel then also be made public at the same time that the selection panel provides those recommendations to the President (it makes no sense – if the process is to be open and transparent – for them to be made public AFTER the candidate has been appointed).

It is Right2Know’s hope that the above matters will be taken into consideration.

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For further comment contact:

Biko Mutsaurwa, R2K NWG Member: (021) 447 1000

Alison Tilley, R2K NWG Member: 071 671 8654