The National Consumer Commission head is taking the trade & industry department to court after claiming she was effectively dismissed when her position was advertised.

Mamodupi Mohlala-Mulaudzi claimed she only learnt of her contract’s termination when seeing her position advertised in a Sunday newspaper last week.

She was appointed commission head in 2010 following an out-of-court settlement with the department of communications, after her removal as director-general by former communications minister Siphiwe Nyanda.

Mohlala-Mulaudzi claimed she was being victimised for reporting the department’s current director-general, Lionel October, to the public protector.

“The answer is that the public protector has communicated to myself that she deems the complaint I laid against the director-general as valid. That is the only reason,” The Star quoted her as saying.

Department spokesman Sidwell Medupe said trade & industry would fight her in court.

“She cannot say she only learnt about the advert in the papers because the minister [Rob Davies] wrote to her about it way before the advert was placed,” he said. — Sapa