DA welcomes dismissal of Prasa CEO

28 February 2017

The DA welcomes the dismissal of Mr Collins Letsoalo as Acting CEO of Prasa following his alleged 350 % salary increase.

Prasa’s swift action against Letsoalo is a positive sign for accountability in the public sector.

However, it is important that this matter is conducted in a transparent manner and the DA believes that Mr Letsoala must still be investigated by the Public Service Commission (PSC) for his alleged dubious conduct as Acting CEO of Prasa. He must also appear before SCOPA to account for his salary package. The DA has already written to both the PSC and SCOPA to request these investigations.

If he is found guilty of inflating his salary, he must repay every cent.

It is unacceptable that the CEOs of parastatals earn millions, despite poor performances, while millions of South Africans struggle to put food on the table.

Prasa, in response to a DA parliamentary question, undertook to appoint a permanent CEO in the first half of last year. We hope that Prasa now, after the disastrous reigns of both Lucky Montana and Collins Letsoalo, finally launches a proper, transparent and speedy process to appoint a suitable CEO who will not abuse the position for self-enrichment.

Every year millions of rands in public funds are wasted on these ineffective CEOs, whilst the youth of the lost generation struggle to find funding for their education in order to gain the skills to participate in our country’s economy.

The DA will continue its fight against the wasteful and fruitless expenditure that has become entrenched in the ANC government’s public sector.

Issued by Manny de Freitas, DA Shadow Minister of Transport, 28 February 2017