The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has been instructed to proceed
with disciplinary proceedings against chief operation officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng
following the dismissal of his appeal by the Supreme Court of Appeal.
The appeal relates to public protector Thuli Madonsela’s recommendation that
Motsoeneng be suspended and undergo a disciplinary inquiry following an
investigation which revealed he had been dishonest about his qualifications in his
initial job application; sporadically increased his and other staff member’s salaries;
and ousted SABC staff which disagreed with his operations. Despite the findings
detailed in Madonsela’s report “When Governance and Ethics Fail’, which released in
February this year, Motsoeneng was appointed permanently as chief operating
officer by communications minister Faith Muthambi. This resulted in a court order
for the disciplinary action to be implemented by South Africa’s main opposition
party, the Democratic Alliance (DA).
Times Live reported
that the public broadcaster’s Annual Report, which was tabled in Parliament in
September, showed that in one year Motsoeneng’s salary increased from
R2 872 000 to R3 784 000, and included a bonus of R279 000.
According to a report by RDM News
Wire, DA shadow minister of communications Gavin Davis commented, “It
should be remembered that Motsoeneng was earning just R334 000 as an SABC
radio producer in 2010. Five years later and his salary has increased more than ten-
fold. Must be nice to have friends in high places.”
“The DA will be requesting the Public Protector to investigate the lawfulness of
Motsoeneng’s million-rand pay-rise. We cannot sit back and allow Motsoeneng to
wreck the SABC and be rewarded handsomely for doing so.’
