Fin24 reports that according to state-owned arms manufacturer Denel, it is in the process of appointing an executive team to lead the organisation and bolster its efforts to improve governance, restructure and stabilise the organisation to fulfil its mandate.

On Wednesday, the interim chair of Denel Gloria Tomatoe Serobe told Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) that the process to appoint a group chief executive, a chief financial officer and a chief audit executive would be completed during the current financial year. These critical positions are currently occupied by interim appointments. But, some MPs were bemused when Serobe’s own status on the board came into question. The Deputy Minister of Public Enterprises, Obed Bapela, who led the Denel delegation to the meeting, did not know whether Serobe was a permanently appointed chair, or was interim chair of the board. Serobe explained that she was acting as chair, as the previous chairperson had resigned and left the board. The board itself is down to six members, less than half its full strength of 13 board members. Denel has had no fewer than seven acting and permanent chief executives over the past seven years. The current acting chief executive, Michael Kgobe, was appointed into the position in September 2022. The current chief financial officer has also been in an acting capacity since 2021. The group has been struggling to pay the salaries of its staff, and has been unable to pay its suppliers and service its debt for the better part of the past five years. It has run out of orders for its equipment, thereby depleting revenue streams, and has not been able to fully supply the primary equipment for the SA National Defence Force.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sikonathi Mantshantsha at Fin24

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