New IEC boss is in the Presidency’s pocket

Vuma Mashinini, who is earmarked to be the next Chairperson of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), has been employed in the Presidency since May 2010, earning well over R 1 million a year.

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This has emerged in a DA parliamentary question.

Between May 2010 and April 2012, Mr Mashinini was employed as Vice Chairman of the President’s review commission on State Owned Enterprises.

In this capacity, he was able to bill an hourly rate of R1 121, capped at a maximum of 160 hours per month. This means he could have hauled in an annual bounty of nearly R2.2 million. An almost presidential salary.

In November 2012, Mr Mashinini was appointed as a full-time advisor to President Zuma on “special projects”, with a price tag of over R1.4 million a year. On his current contract, which is linked to Zuma’s term of office, he rakes in over R1.5 million per year.

Mr Mashinini is clearly on a very lucrative wicket at the Presidency. He has been enjoying the benefits of presidential patronage for years now. His proximity to the President casts real doubt on his ability to be independent and non-partisan at the IEC.

“I will submit further questions to determine exactly how much Mr Mashinini earned at the hourly rate between 2010 and 2012, and to discover exactly what the “special projects” are that he has been advising the President on,” said Dr Michael Cardo the DA Shadow Deputy Minister in the Presidency.

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