Pretoria - The Department of Communications says it has not formally received a letter from the South African Broadcasting (SABC) board requesting approval for the appointment of Hlaudi Motsoeneng as acting Chief Operating Officer (COO).
“We want to state categorically that we have not formally received such letter from the SABC board for the Minister’s consideration,” the ministry said on Thursday.
This comes after a document reportedly emerged showing the board had decided it was going to ask Minister Faith Muthambi to ratify the appointment of Motsoeneng as COO on an acting basis.
“As stated before, we are confident that the SABC will give due consideration to the court ruling in the case of Motsoeneng. As the shareholder representative, our duty is to wait for the SABC to engage us formally on this matter, in line with the mandate of the broadcaster.
“Until such time, it would be highly inappropriate for the ministry to make public pronouncements,” the department said.
On Monday, the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) in Bloemfontein dismissed Motsoeneng’s application for leave to appeal a High Court ruling that his permanent appointment should be set aside.
Motsoeneng approached the SCA after the Western Cape High Court ruled that his appointment was irrational and unlawful.
Motsoeneng began acting as COO in 2011 and Communications Minister Faith Muthambi confirmed his permanent appointment in 2014.
The SCA dismissed Motsoeneng’s appeal with costs on the grounds that there is no reasonable prospect of success. His lawyer, Advocate Zola Majavu, has indicated that Motsoeneng will not appeal the matter in the Constitutional Court, as he accepts and respects the SCA’s decision. - SAnews.gov.za
