Share

Court orders Motsoeneng disciplinary

Johannesburg - The Western Cape High Court ordered on Friday that SABC chief operating officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng face a disciplinary hearing and be suspended with full pay.

"The board of the SA Broadcasting Corporation Limited [SABC] shall, within 14 calendar days of the date of this order, commence, by way of serving on him a notice of charges, disciplinary proceedings against... Mr George Hlaudi Motsoeneng," Judge Ashton Schippers said in his order.

"The disciplinary proceedings... shall be completed within a period of 60 calendar days after they have been commenced."

He said if the disciplinary was not completed in the allocated time the SABC had to deliver an affidavit to the court explaining why and when it would be completed.

Motsoeneng was entitled to five days of delivery of the affidavit by the chairperson to deliver an answering affidavit.

"Pending the finalisation of the disciplinary proceedings... [Motsoeneng] shall be suspended on full pay," Schippers said.

The SABC, its board, its chairperson Ellen Tshabalala and Communications Minister Faith Muthambi were ordered to pay the costs of the application.

The SABC on Friday said it would study the judgment.

"The board will study the judgment and then decide on the way forward," spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago said.

The DA applied for an urgent interim interdict suspending Motsoeneng pending a review of the decision to appoint him.

In February, Public Protector Thuli Madonsela released a report on Motsoeneng, while he was acting COO.

She found his salary increased from R1.5m to R2.4m in one year, that he had purged senior staff, and misrepresented his matric qualifications to the SABC. Madonsela recommended that a new COO be appointed at the SABC within 90 days.

In July, Muthambi announced Motsoeneng's permanent appointment. She said he was cleared of all wrongdoing by a legal firm before the decision was made.

The DA then launched a high court bid to have his appointment set aside.

This was the second part of the DA's application which would be heard next year.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Do you think corruption-accused National Assembly Speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will survive a motion of no confidence against her?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
No, her days are numbered
41% - 545 votes
Yes, the ANC caucus will protect her
59% - 777 votes
Vote
Rand - Dollar
18.90
+0.2%
Rand - Pound
23.84
+0.3%
Rand - Euro
20.39
+0.2%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.31
+0.3%
Rand - Yen
0.12
+0.2%
Platinum
908.05
0.0%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE