Communications minister Siphiwe Nyanda has fired his director-general, Mamodupi Mohlala, saying that trust between the two had “broken down irretrievably”.
“In the interests of the department, the staff and the government, the minister has come to the conclusion that it would be best to release Mohlala from her position as director-general with effect from 23 July 2010,” Nyanda’s spokesman Tiyani Rikhotso said in a terse statement issued on Friday evening.
Talk of tension between Nyanda and Mohlala has been swirling for several weeks.
The minister has not explained the reason for his decision. However, media reports have suggested that Nyanda had threatened to rewrite Mohlala’s job specification, effectively taking away some of her administrative powers.
The Business Day newspaper reported last week that Mohlala had refused to approve tenders because they had been awarded “to people close to Nyanda” and his company, General Nyanda Security Services.
Nyanda’s statement says he and deputy communications minister Dina Pule tried to resolve the issue with Mohlala on Friday but did not succeed.
They say the issues threatened the day-to-day operations of the department.
Nyanda has appointed Harold Wesso as acting director-general until he can find a permanent replacement. — Staff reporter, TechCentral
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