ETVA staff not reinstated despite report

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However, almost two years after the select committee wound up its work, the dismissed employees are still in limbo despite recommendations that they be reinstated. The committee had found that their dismissals were unfair, and emanated from ‘trumpedup or false charges’. It said the employment laws of the country were allegedly not followed in terms of disciplining staff as some staff members were dismissed for charges that could have been addressed with a first or last warning.

Review

The committee recommended an immediate review of all cases of every staff member that had been dismissed ‘during the tenure of the current management’. It found that there were incidents in which female staff members were allegedly subjected to sexual harassment by senior management and alleged that one staff member was reportedly impregnated by a senior manager. It said that senior management allegedly disregarded court orders to reinstate employees at the station, as it was observed in the case of one former employee. The committee said judgment in his case was rescinded at a later stage but contempt was already in place.

Some former staff members told Eswatini News this week that they had not been reinstated despite the recommendation by the select committee. “We are still at home and have not been fortunate to find employment due to the fewer opportunities in the electronic media industry in the country. We have not had a salary for over four years and have nothing to support our families with,” said one employee.

Another employee said he had also made submissions to the select committee with the hope of getting justice, but was surprised that nothing was happening.

“There have been no reviews of the summary dismissal and we are still at home. No one has even called us to say anything. By now, I think the report has started to collect dust.

“If the legislators could not help us, then we do not know any other alternative,” he said.

The new CEO at ETVA, Kenneth Maziya, said he was aware of the issue, but was not in a position to comment about the select committee report, since it was done at parliamentary level. He said his understanding was that it was the Ministry of Information Communication and Telecommunication (ICT) which had the prerogative to implement such a report. “I would recommend that comments be sourced from the ministry on such an issue,” he said.

The Principal Secretary in the Ministry of ICT, Maxwell Masuku recommended that the question be responded to by the judiciary.