Lawsuit over allegations

FORMER SA Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) leader Thobile Ntola faces a lawsuit of more than R15 million following his failure to provide proof that some of the incumbent ANC-aligned teachers’ union leaders did not have relevant qualifications.

Ntola – now president of the SA Liberated Public Service Workers’ Union (Salipswu) – and a fellow executive member, Mbuyiseni Mathonsi, made a litany of allegations against their former union last month.

They claimed that Sadtu leaders, particularly deputy president Lucas Maphila, made exorbitant travel claims from the SA Council of Educators (Sace). The duo also claimed that Sadtu KwaZulu-Natal provincial secretary Nomarashiya Caluza did not possess a relevant teachers’ qualification.

Salipswu placed all these allegations on its official website on February 1.

This prompted Sadtu through its general secretary Mugwena Maluleke to serve them with a letter of demand in which he asked them to withdraw their allegations unreservedly.

They continued to make allegations even after the letter of demand was served.

Maluleke and his executive filed separate applications in the Durban High Court and the High Court in Pretoria to force Salipswu to retract their allegations or face their wrath.

“Sadtu and the affected leaders are suing Salipswu, Ntola and Mathonsi for over R15 million,” Maluleke said.

He said allegations that Caluza did not have the qualifications were made in 2016, but a police investigation found that the claims had no merit.

“The same allegations were repeated in 2018 and the SA Council of Educators has again found that the allegations have no merit,” Maluleke said.

“The actions and conduct of Ntola and Mathonsi will collapse Salipswu and leave these members without a union,” Maluleke said.

Ntola and Mathonsi did not respond to the allegations.