Inspector-General of Intelligence – Here’s what you need to know about Imtiaz Fazel

Imtiaz Fazel will on Tuesday start as South Africa’s new Inspector-General of Intelligence (IGI).

SA’s intelligence watchdog

Fazel was appointed to the post by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday following his unanimous endorsement by MPs in the National Assembly in September.

He will serve in the position for a period of five years after former IGI Setlhomamaru Dintwe‘s term ended earlier this year in March.

Fazel’s appointment as the country’s intelligence watchdog boss has been widely welcomed by parties across the political spectrum, especially in light of the High-Level Review Panel report into the State Security Agency (SSA) and the Zondo Commission findings, which highlighted weaknesses in South Africa’s police and intelligence agencies.

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The IGI monitors and reviews the operations of the intelligence services, including the SSA, the Defence Intelligence Division of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and the Crime Intelligence Division of the South African Police Service (Saps).

Here’s what you need to know about Imtiaz Fazel:

Experience

• Fazel may be a chartered accountant by training, but he is no stranger to the spy world, having spent 10 years working in intelligence services before joining the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) in 2012.
• He is a former chief operating officer (COO) – at the level of deputy director-general – in the Office of the Inspector-General of Intelligence and a former deputy director-general in the office of the director-general of the SSA.
• According to his curriculum vitae, Fazel’s entrance into state security was in 1997, when he was a consultant for military intelligence, before he became COO of intelligence.
• As a consultant, he provided advice to various ministers on finance, auditing, oversight of covert structures, and generally assisting ministers in handling intelligence matters.
• From 2015 to 2020, Fazel served as deputy director-general: governance, risk and compliance in the DPWI, following which he served as acting director-general in the department.

READ MORE: High-level panel keen to get SSA house in order

Education

• Fazel attended school in Benoni, Ekurhuleni, in the 70s. He later graduated with a Bachelor of Accountancy Science from the University of South Africa in 1988.
• This was followed by a postgraduate Diploma in Accounting from the University of the Western Cape in 1991, and admission as an auditor in 1995.
• In between work and his studies, Fazel was a member of the African National Congress (ANC) and worked across various NGOs.
• He was also a member of a student movement called the Benoni Youth League, which was an affiliate of the United Democratic Front (UDF).
• In 1989, he was head of finance at Kimberly Clark Corporation. He was also a member of audit teams at various multi-national companies, including Kellogg Group, Tongaat Hulett Group, Shell, Sun International Hotels division and the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF).
• While working at the SSA, he enrolled to study further and graduated with a Master’s degree in Security Studies.

Compiled by Thapelo Lekabe. Additional reporting by Getrude Makhafola

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