By Edwin Naidu
Given his love for the limelight, there is no doubt that the former Minister of Higher Education, Dr Blade Nzimande, loves being in the spotlight.
Under his watch, the Department of Higher Education and Training spent R80 million over five years on various workshops. Since January 2024, the DHET has spent close to R40 million on events.
Nzimande passed the baton to Dr Nobuhle Nkabane on 3 July following her appointment to the Government of National Unity portfolio.
However, during his tenure, the department spent millions on national chains, smaller boutique hotels and conference centres for events and workshops involving government officials, schools and academics. Not all this was the Minister’s choice, but it was under his stewardship. He should have kept a close eye on the government purse strings.
As Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Nzimande’s many forays in South Africa and abroad will surely be scrutinised soon. He must be one of the most prolific government officials on social media. But questions about oversight under his watch at DHET are just starting.
On 7 January 2025, MP Tabiso Wana asked him about the costs of hiring venues.
Specifically, the question sought detailed information on the expenditure by the Minister’s department and each entity reporting to him over the past five years and since January 1, 2024.
The inquiry asked for a comprehensive breakdown of costs, including the name and address of each venue, the reason for the hire, the attendees, the total price and any additional related expenses.
The Minister responded by stating that a consolidated input report detailing the departmental events and associated costs was prepared in response to the question.
While one does not dismiss these as a waste of time, one must consider the amount of time spent on deliberations, not to mention the expense. In many cases, the motivation was that the department in Pretoria could not host meetings for more than 50 attendees. Hence, alternative venues in the city were needed at luxury hotels. Occasionally, delegates were accommodated at these hotels over two to three days during workshops.
While the DHET has long been in disarray, with senior officials in acting positions, Parliament has heard that they have been tardy in filling hundreds of posts. But it has no problems spending millions of taxpayers’ monies on conferences at five-star venues.
This summary encapsulates the essence of Ms Wana’s inquiry and the Minister’s response, focusing on the financial aspects of venue hiring for departmental events in recent years.
This piece by no means suggests any wrongdoing. Still, when the government has been talking about tightening the purse strings, it does not make sense to dish out millions to luxury hotels and conference venues when the Department of Public Works should have facilities it can use for such purposes.
Universities and Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges also have large venues that could be used better and cost-effectively. Nzimande’s leadership of the South African Communist Party should have made him uncomfortable with making the capitalist hoteliers rich through these expensive gatherings. But then the Minister who reportedly loves his Merlot – and Beemer can’t park a government luxury vehicle anywhere, right?
Therefore, as some would argue, white monopoly capital is the biggest beneficiary of government spending, which is, to put it mildly, a disgrace because, on the one hand, the government talks about transformation but supports the status quo by making the fat-cat owners richer.
Full marks to his successor, Dr Nkabane, for making this information available transparently. It’s a positive step to unpacking how the DHET deals with its venue hire or accommodation challenges.
This becomes imperative when one considers the country’s financial challenges. According to the International Monetary Fund, the government’s high debt burden and debt-servicing costs are draining the economy, along with high unemployment and slow economic growth.
Venue hiring and luxury hotels are not necessities. Government departments should rein in spending that appears to have gotten out of control. Why pay tens of millions for facilities that the State has in abundance? One can imagine millions would be saved.
Let’s hope DHET will better manage taxpayers’ resources under Minister Nkabane’s guidance and communicate its work at these conferences so the public understands how it contributes to the national learning agenda.
Edwin Naidu is the Editor of Inside Education.
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