Phumla Williams resigns as government communications boss

Phumla Williams is leaving her position as director-general of the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS).

Williams is said to have already announced her departure to the GCIS staff, according to insiders.

“It’s not a secret, she has already announced to staff,” said an insider.

Williams took over as director-general in May 2020 after having acted in the position since 2012 after the departure of Mzwanele Manyi.

It is believed she will be leaving the position around the end of September.

Williams told TimesLIVE: “I am still a public servant until I finish my notice period.”

It is believed she did not want the news of her departure to come out until next month.

Williams has been in public service for almost three decades and is planning to stay on in the public service, having told those around her that the struggle was her “life” and that she would “never throw in the towel no matter how hard”.

She previously told the state capture commission about the hardships she faced during Faith Muthambi’s tenure as communications minister.

Williams told the commission how Muthambi made her life difficult in her pursuit of access to the GCIS budget.

“She wanted procurement at all costs. She wanted to steal at all cost,” Williams testified before the Zondo commission.

Williams had also testified Muthambi had ensured 70% of staff under her were no longer reporting to her, a move which almost made her position redundant.

At the time, Williams had been demoted to her old position as deputy director-general while Donald Liphoko acted in the position.

“They knew they had removed me from doing cabinet work. They decided that procurement and finance must be removed from this woman,” she said at the time.

TimesLIVE

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