Tau defends IDC appointments amid budget backlash

TRADE, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau on Friday defended the appointment of ANC-aligned individuals to the board of the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC).

- MAYIBONGWE MAQHINA

This was after his department came under criticism when he presented the 2025/26 budget in the National Assembly.

“It is disingenuous to simply suggest that capability is limited by the fact that you are affiliated with the ANC. It is not true. It is an anomaly to think that way,” Tau said.

There has been outrage after former ministers Ayanda Dlodlo and Sydney Mufamadi, as well as former KwaZulu-Natal premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube, were named among those appointed to the IDC board.

Now, there is a push for Tau to appear before the Trade, Industry and Competition Portfolio Committee to explain the appointment process for the board.

During the budget vote debate, the EFF described the IDC board as being filled with ANC loyalists while the DA questioned whether Tau was serious to believe that Dlodlo and Mufamadi were anything other than ANC deployees instructed to do the party’s work.

In his response, Tau said it was a problem in Parliament to suggest that Mufamadi, who is an industrial economist, simply because of his affiliation to the ANC, was not eligible to serve on the IDC board.