The term of office of TVET College Council Ministerial Appointees came to an end on 30 October 2018 in 4 provinces, i.e. Eastern Cape, Free State, KwaZulu Natal and Limpopo. The nomination of Ministerial Appointees for Council members in those provinces closed on 31 August 2018, and most Councils have since been appointed.
The term of office of TVET College Council Ministerial Appointees for the remaining provinces; Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, Western Cape, North West, and Gauteng, ends in March and April 2019. Thus the nominations opened this week (02 December 2018), with the above advertisement appearing, among others, in the Sunday Times. The nominations will close on Monday, 14 January 2019.
After being nominated, the nominees undergo a vetting process that includes;
- Credit Check,
- Criminal Record Check,
- Verification of qualifications,
- Identity verification, and
- Directorships (CIPC)
Those who are cleared in the vetting process are then scored according to various criteria, including qualification, knowledge of the sector and experience. There is also a need, to the extent possible, to balance the gender, diversity, continuity, and geographic location.
Past experience suggests that some of the nominees, who might otherwise have qualified, are not considered because when they are contacted for the vetting process, which includes taking fingerprints for criminal record checks, they are difficult to get hold of. It is thus important for nominees to keep their phones charged, and to the extent possible pick up calls when called, including those that may be from strange looking numbers that resembles those of irritating telemakerters, at least until 2 months after the closing date. They can then go back to ignoring calls.
Furthermore, contact details of people involved in the process are intentionally included in the advert, for those who may have queries. If someone who is not involved in the process were to be asked questions about it, they will have to ask the same people who are indicated as contact people, because they are the ones involved in the process.
It is also noteworthy that there may be people nominated who are cleared in the vetting process, and have good scores in the scoring criteria but might still not be appointed. The number of available spaces is fixed and once all the spaces are filled, even people who qualify may not be appointed. If a nominee is not contacted within 3 months from the closing date, they should consider that their nomination may not have led to an appointment for either of the reasons narrated here.
Footnote: If you are disinclined to visiting official websites of institutions you would like to serve, here is the link to download the nomination form from the website indicated in the advert