CC image courtesy of Zaian.
Controversial South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) chief operations officer (COO) Hlaudi Motsoeneng should not be punished for 19-year-old lie, the state broadcaster has said in court papers.
The New Age reports SABC board chair Ellen Tshabalala said the broadcaster had not rewarded “malfeasance” when permanently appointing Motsoeneng.
HumanIPO reported last month opposition party the Democratic Alliance (DA) was taking legal action against Motsoeneng’s permanent appointment, which occurred despite calls from numerous parties to have him suspended after findings by public protector Thuli Madonsela, who reported the COO had lied about his education history and given himself raises while holding the position.
But in court papers, Tshabalala rubbished the public protector’s report and said Motsoeneng had been appointed “in the interests of the SABC — to achieve its stability going forward”.
“Hlaudi Motsoeneng has been in the position of acting COO for more than two years and there is no direct evidence of harm that he has caused to the SABC in that time,” she said.
“Upon investigation into this recommendation by the public protector, the SABC is satisfied that there has been no irregular spending through unlawful and improper actions of Motsoeneng.”
