Ousted communications department director-general Mamodupi Mohlala looks set for a court date his week after she spurned a second offer from President Jacob Zuma to settle the matter amicably.
Communications minister Siphiwe Nyanda fired Mohlala a month ago, saying trust between the two had “broken down irretrievably”.
Mohlala then fought back, submitting a tell-all affidavit to the labour court.
Mohlala says she still hopes a resolution will be found before Thursday when the labour court is due to hear the matter.
“There may be some sort of resolution presented to me before my court date this week,” she says.
Late last week, Zuma and public service & administration minister Richard Baloyi offered Mohlala a R2,9m golden handshake, which she declined.
In addition to the R2,9m — what she would have earned for her time as director-general — the president and Baloyi have offered to cover R200 000 of her legal fees.
This is the second cash offer the former director-general has rejected. Nyanda offered her R1,6m late in July.
She says she is entitled to a similar position in government. She wants either her job at the communications department back, or to be given an equally senior position in another portfolio.
Mohlala wants the labour court to reinstate her, arguing Nyanda did not have the right to hire or fire her. She postponed her initial court action to this week after Zuma intervened and asked Baloyi to resolve the matter.
Nyanda was supposed to have submitted an answering affidavit to the original court application by 17 August. However, Mohlala says her legal team has not received the statement.
According to Mohlala, Nyanda can still submit the document on the day of the court case. However, her lawyers can argue prejudice if his legal team only submits it then as she will not have had a chance to see the statement before the proceedings begin.
She is also entitled to file an answering document, which she will not be able to do if Nyanda submits his papers on the day of the hearing.
Nyanda’s spokesman, Tiyani Rikhotso, could not be reached for comment. — Candice Jones, TechCentral
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