G-whiz, Mr Prez, no exposure here

Government photographers in skimpy spat

ASQUABBLE over a government employee’s allegedly skimpy outfits and seductive conduct in front of President Jacob Zuma and his deputy, Cyril Ramaphosa, has led to her being served with a notice of suspension.

Siyasanga Mbambani, an assistant director of media production in the presidential unit of the Government and Communications Information System, was given the notice on Friday after a protracted battle with her boss, Elmond Jiyane, deputy-director of media production in the department. Both are photographers.

The 27-year-old Mbambani alleges Jiyane falsely accused her of making sexual overtures to Zuma and Ramaphosa by being scantily dressed and flashing her “full bums” and breasts at the pair while taking pictures of them during official events.

Mbambani alleged that Jiyane accused her of wearing mini-skirts and leggings while on assignment, which she viewed “as sexist, emotional and sexual harassment”.

She alleged she had been bullied and harassed in a flurry of e-mail exchanges with Jiyane and correspondence with senior management. She cited a post-state of the Nation address cocktail party in 2015 in Cape Town, during a selfie session. Mbambani said Jiyane had made the accusations during a departmental meeting in Pretoria.

Jiyane allegedly told her: “You asked to take a photo with the president, and you grabbed him closer.”

Mbambani denied this and said the president had asked to take a picture with her.

“The president had asked for a photo with me. He posed and asked Elmond to take pictures,” she said.

Before that, she alleged, Jiyane had accused her of similar conduct at an event in the Eastern Cape in October 2014.

“He (Jiyane) said I was wearing leggings that were not appropriate for a presidential event. He said “your whole bums were showing…” she alleged, adding, “the first time he raised the matter, he went into detail, saying my G-string was showing.”

Other incidents cited were in Port Elizabeth, where the president addressed an International Women’s Day function on August 3, 2015 and in Lesotho, during one of Ramahosa’s peace mission trips.

In e-mail correspondence The Sunday Tribune has seen, Jiyane said he would give her protocol training after he “got feedback” that Mbambani had addressed a deputy minister on a first-name basis during interaction on social media.

She alleged Jiyane had also told her the complaints about her dress had come from Zuma.

Mbambani further alleged the accusations were a result of an acrimonious power struggle between her and Jiyane over the coverage of events presided over by Zuma and Ramaphosa.

She wrote, in an e-mail she sent to Ramaphosa pleading for intervention, that Zuma had once told her in front of Jiyane that “you (Jiyane) must be careful because the young woman is going to take over”.

She said: “He (Jiyane) had indignantly confronted me and said he was the only official photographer for the president… and no one else would ever be. Also (he said) he has more than 20 years of experience as a state photographer, so having university qualifications meant nothing.”

As the alleged harassment escalated and relations between the two broke down irretrievably, Mbambani said she was removed from the team of photographers covering presidential events.

She said she had been assigned to cover mostly spousal events. Jiyane appears to confirm this in an e-mail in which he noted “withdrawal from covering the president”.

She said she got no help from management – acting department director-general Donald Liphoko was “hostile and intimidating”.

She accused Jiyane of victimising her by denying her the right to take leave and targeting her during assessment tests.

But Jiyane was cleared in an internal investigation and Mbambani was given a written warning, which she refused to sign.

Yesterday Jiyane hit back, accusing Mbambani of undermining his authority and insubordination. He said she had a tendency of taking leave without permission.

Ramaphosa responded to one of her emails to him: “Ntombazane. Was good to see you. You’ve lost some weight it seems. You took some really nice pictures. I am worried about what you told me and hope you are okay.”

Jiyane said Mbambani was “unashamedly using the president’s name to peddle her lies and get attention”.

Presidential spokesperson Bongani Ngqulunga said Zuma had nothing to do with the dress code of the institution’s photographers.