Cape Town – I read with interest the debate on whether a person in public office needs a degree to qualify for a key position.
As I see it, one needs the best person for the job, and that does not necessarily mean someone with a degree.
One can have a degree in engineering, which will not help one running a department of, say, agriculture or fishing. Or degree in medicine, which won't help in running water affairs.
Applicants for various positions need to sit an exam set by the department they are wanting to work in, that knows the sort of questions that should be asked, for the right appointment to be made.
The best person passing these exams gets the job, irrespective of party political lines. This is how municipalities are run in some Asian countries. An exam is set and the most competent person gets the job.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all our municipalities were run by the best and most able people!
What a change we would see in how these municipalities, councils and parastatals are run, with the right people in the jobs. Instead of, at present, inappropriate affirmative action and jobs for pals.
No wonder there are protests on a daily basis, as these municipalities are simply not coping with the incompetence in their ranks. Very sad!