They were gunning for me, says suspended SABC boss

SUSPENDED SABC chief executive Frans Matlala had been targeted in retaliation for cooperating with a Treasury investigation into the broadcaster, he claimed in a lawyer’s letter responding to warnings served on him earlier this month of his impending suspension.

In other explosive allegations, Matlala claimed that:

He was instructed to stop co-operating with the Treasury investigation by board chairman Obert Maghuve;

The process to appoint attorneys to act in the disciplinary inquiry into chief operating officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng was flawed;

Communications Minister Faith Muthambi gave the go-ahead for his suspension without him being given a chance to make representations in his defence;

A letter addressed to members of the SABC board regarding his suspension included Motsoeneng, despite the fact that he had taken a leave of absence pending the disciplinary inquiry and on the understanding he would not take part in SABC matters or communicate with staff;

The decision to begin suspension proceedings was unlawful in that the board, in his absence, did not have a quorum and because it was not supported by 70% of those voting, as required by the broadcaster’s memorandum of incorporation;

One of the charges against him was that he had not been authorised to write to President Jacob Zuma apologising for “the Twitter incident” (when the SABC’s account was hacked and a message that read, “what. the. f**k!!!”, was posted in response to a story about Zuma getting a new R4 billion VIP jet).

Matlala’s lawyer, Joe Mothibi, said in the letter, addressed to Maghuve, dated Tuesday, that SABC policy made it clear that the group chief executive should be the point of contact between the broadcaster and the government.

The SABC announced yesterday that Matlala had been suspended with immediate effect, pending an investigation into undisclosed matters, with Jimi Matthews, the group executive for news and current affairs, taking over in an acting capacity.

SABC spokesman Kaizer Kganyago said that he could not divulge the reasons for the suspension or comment further.

Mothibi’s letter also demanded that the decision be rescinded by Tuesday and stated that, as the accounting officer of the SABC was required by law to co-operate with a Treasury investigation, he would be committing financial misconduct should he fail to do so.