PUT ENGINEERS WHERE THEY BELONG – OUR ANSWER TO BUILDING A CAPABLE STATE

In SA’s Health System, qualified medical practitioners occupy the positions of Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee, Minister, Deputy Minister, a Director-General, HoDs (9 Provinces) and two MECs (Limpopo & Gauteng). This approach pays dividends as seen in the way healthcare is tackling COVID-19. They also exposed and are working towards rectifying the inadequacies of the system.

The exact same principle should apply to engineering services – qualified engineering practitioners occupy infrastructure delivery offices. However, in the broken Services Infrastructure System, SA engineers cannot take the lead as they have no say.

Fact: A suitably qualified, professionally registered engineer understands the technical issues surrounding all service delivery-related infrastructure, whereas a non-technical person is unable to grasp the enormity of knowledge required in the world of engineering.

“Like slavery and apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings.”  ̴ Nelson Mandela

As for Health, professionally registered, competent and experienced engineers should be Minister and Deputy Minister, Director-Generals, Deputy Director-Generals, Directors etc of Infrastructure delivery portfolios. This should be the norm in the Department of Water and Sanitation South Africa , Department of Human Settlements , Department of Public Works and Infrastructure Department of Transport , etc — applicable to all infrastructure-related departments and SoEs responsible for essential service delivery infrastructure, i.e. water, sanitation, roads, buildings, etc.
It is therefore incomprehensible and concerning that these departments will be headed by unsuitably qualified politicians and officials.

An opinion piece by Changing Things South Africa

PICTURE: Nelson Mandela