Government spokesman Joel Netshitenzhe, speaking to reporters in Cape Town after the fortnightly Cabinet meeting, said a panel of ministers, including Home Affairs Minister Mangosuthu Buthelezi, had agreed on the appointment.
"By the time it came to Cabinet there was consensus amongst the panellists," he said.
The decision had been held up due to Buthelezi's opposition to Gilder's appointment.
The minister, who is also president of the Inkatha Freedom party, had wanted his close aide, Ivan Lambinon, to be appointed to the post, while his Cabinet colleagues had preferred Gilder.
The home affairs department has been without a director-general since June last year, after Billy Masetlha, also a former intelligence official, resigned after months of tension between himself and Buthelezi.
Lambinon has been acting DG since Masetlha's departure.
Netshitenzhe said he was not sure whether the impasse between Buthelezi and his Cabinet colleague had been settled through a dispute resolution mechanism, as had been speculated.
Gilder was appointed on a three-year contract. – Sapa.
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