The presidency is breaking out of its circle of ”yes-men” to hire advisers from the political mainstream.
The appointment of three new faces — two advisers and the deputy head of policy coordination — announced last week is being described as an attempt to ”beef up the sensible end of the scale in the presidency”.
The presidency, which also includes the Office of the Deputy President, is regarded as a closed club of African National Congress exile members and other close associates of President Thabo Mbeki. Notable among the members of this club are Minister in the Office of the President Essop Pahad, who was in exile with Mbeki, and the Director General of the Presidency Frank Chikane, who has a United Democratic Front background.
Pahad is widely believed to be the hand that runs the presidency.
Also influential is Nelson Mandela’s former communications head Joel Netshitenzhe, an ANC activist who was in exile, named head of policy coordination and advisory services in the presidency late last year.
Part of Netshitenzhe’s new duties include monitoring progress being made by the government on its various delivery targets in areas such as housing, electricity and water. He is seen as a prominent player in the Mbeki circle. Along with Pahad, he has taken a leading role in trying to shape the government turnaround on its controversial stand on HIV/Aids.
The new appointees have been drawn from ANC activists who fought the apartheid regime on home ground.
Ebrahim, a former member of Umkhonto weSizwe, will advise Deputy President Jacob Zuma on politics while Aboobaker, former chief director of integrated planning and economic development and once a member of the UDF, is now second in command of policy coordination and policy. The third appointee, Siya-bonga Mcetywa, will advise Zuma on business.
Ebrahim and Mcetywa replace former advisers Bongani Khumalo and Jabulani Mzaliya, while Aboobaker fills the vacancy left by Pundy Pillay — who resigned under a cloud of controversy two years ago sparked by moves to downgrade the unit.
Ebrahim and Aboobaker were also part of Mandela’s government. A founding member of the Human Rights Committee and the Chatsworth Housing Action Committee, Aboo-baker was brought into the presidency by Mandela adviser Jakes Gerwel.
ANC members describe him as ”bureaucratic but progressive”. Another member commented that Aboobaker’s appointment was heartening as he comes from an ”orthodox scientific background” — a comment made in context of the Aids dissident views expounded until recently by the presidency.
Aboobaker will act as supervisor of the policy coordination services. His duties will include overseeing research programmes and those dealing with gender, disability and children, and managing the coordination of the clusters of directors general.
Ebrahim served as chairperson of Parliament’s foreign affairs committee until his deployment to the presidency. ”Stable, sensible and progressive” are some of the adjectives used by ANC members to describe him.
Mcetywa worked closely with Zuma when the deputy president was KwaZulu-Natal MEC for economic affairs and tourism. He helped facilitate the establishment of the Jacob Zuma RDP Educational Trust Fund. ANC members who have dealt with him have described him as ”reasonable and accommodating”.