MAVA SCOTT | Communications conundrum in the GNU is a signal to talk things through

The public spat and jostling that is playing itself out in the government communication space is a design of politics and only politicians must untangle this riddle. To place the blame squarely on the doorstep of the Government Communications and Information System (GCIS) is to avoid the real issue, which is the careful navigation of the political space that the country finds itself post the elections of May 29.

The reality is that the melting pot of the government of nationality unity was never going to be a plain sailing exercise from all angles of political governance, including the contentious space of communications. The sentiment of the English writer HG Wells that “no passion in the world is equal to the passion to alter someone else’s draft” is all written on the walls of South Africa’s current political landscape.

That certain members of the GNU will use the grand platform of government to churn out political communications comes as no surprise. What is concerning is when such manoeuvres get equated to a failure of a government communications system as a whole. Since its inception, the GCIS has steadfastly implemented its mandate, which is to deliver effective strategic government communication and proactively communicate with the public about government policies, plans, programmes and achievements. 

This position was bolstered by the adoption of a formal communications policy for all government institutions in 2018, which sought to streamline and strengthen government communications. There is a distinction to be made between political communications, which in the main are driven by narrow political interests and communications as a tool to inform and empower citizens for a better future.

The professionals at the GCIS are duty-bound to perform their communications function in a professional and non-partisan manner. There is indeed a thin line between administrative and political responsibility in that space of communications, but the rules of the game are clear, the role of a government communicator is prescribed in the policy, which is to communicate government information to the public in a professional and unbiased manner.

There may be issues with the scarcity of resources and the capacity of the GCIS , but this should not be conflated with the complicated political space of the GNU.

The source of the problem in these competing and mixed messages in the public sphere is in the makeup of the GNU, which is a terrain of political management. The sooner this communications matter is brought to the attention of the GNU clearing house mechanism, the better for all of us. In the meantime, the GCIS should continue doing its professional work of empowering citizens with government information for a better tomorrow.

The current tit-for-tat communications theatre does nothing but confuse the ordinary members of the public who are genuinely looking for information and direction from the newly formed GNU. At worst, the jostling lays a fertile ground for those who thrive on chaos with the desire to collapse the glue that holds South Africa together, which is the GNU.

• Mava Scott is a government communicator based at GCIS. He writes in his personal capacity