NEHAWU CONCERNED BY THE CONCERTED ATTACKS ON BLACK WOMEN PROFESSIONALS BY THE DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE {DA}
NEHAWU dismisses with the contempt it deserves, the patronizing outburst by the Democratic Alliance's inimitable opportunist, their MP, Ms Debbie Schaeffer, who released another hysterical media statement accusing the SIU Acting Head, Advocate Nomvula Mokhatla of "mismanaging the SIU without providing facts. This is nothing but a witch-hunt against Adv Nomvula Mokhatla by some deluded narcissists who absurdly believe that their paranoid opinions are facts.
We are concerned that some SIU employees are selfishly feeding the DA with fact-free gossip that it publicly circulates as facts. Working with these gossipmongers the DA thinks that if it embarks on a dirty media campaign to discredit, Adv Mokhatla it will intimidate her and prevent her appointment as a fulltime SIU Head. The DA hopes to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, by reversing the ongoing internal SIU processes that are meant to clean up the mess left by the previous leadership.
Our union has noted with alarm the DA offensive against black female professionals as evidenced by their attack on Acting Director of NPA, Advocate Nomgcobo Jiba, in Parliament where they were questioning her leadership and decision making skills. They have also been waging a dirty media campaign against Ms Miseria Nyathi the SIU Head of Shared Services, questioning her reinstatement.
There is a concerted, well calculated and unsettling campaign by the DA against black female professionals who are appointed by our government in senior positions. The only time they suspect foul play or cry about women victimization is when someone white like Advocate Glynnis Breytenbach is being investigated or SIU's, Marike Muller decides to resign.
We have deep suspicions that their sudden concern about the wellbeing of the SIU workers is not colour blind because the people who have recently resigned are white and most of the victims, that were hounded out of SIU before were black. Advocate Mokhatla must clean up the mess at SIU without fear or favour. If there are sufficient reasons to suspend and discipline some people; that must be done without fear and within the ambit of the law.
It is galling to see the mendacious hypocrites of the DA preaching about the fight against corruption when they refused to support our call for a commission of enquiry at the SIU to investigate a myriad of accusations that were raised by its workers before. We still challenge them to support our call for the appointment of a commission of enquiry to investigate the SIU before Adv Mokhatla's tenure.
It says a lot about the agenda of the DA and its MP Debbie Schaeffer; that she is only now hysterically lamenting about the resignation of individuals at SIU.These people voluntarily decided on their own accord to leave; she was quiet when people were being hounded out and victimized under the previous management.
Adv Mokhatla has stabilized the SIU and has stopped it from being hijacked by a self serving cabal of anti-transformation zealots. They have been repeating themselves in the media, mourning about the reinstatement of SIU's Head of Shared Services, Ms Miseria Nyathi who was unfairly dismissed in the first place. They are beside themselves with anger and frustration to see that the culture of victimization, patronage and favouratism that existed before is being reversed.
NEHAWU calls for the immediate appointment of a permanent SIU Head. We want to make it categorically clear that the SIU will never be hijacked by political parties on our watch. Those who are nostalgic for a lily white and untransformed SUI of the past are in for a shock, they need to accept the fact that apartheid is history. They also need to know that our union will not rest until all traces of apartheid, in whatever shape or form, are eradicated from our institutions.
As workers we will remain vigilant in order to ensure, that no political interference takes place at SIU, and we expect the principled leadership under Adv Mokhatla to shrug any attempts by the DA to blackmail them into inaction. No amount of public lamenting and posturing should be allowed to influence the internal processes at SIU.
The DA should be aware that since 1994, SIU employees especially the previously disadvantaged were denied their labour rights as prescribed by the Labour Relations Act and the Basic Conditions of Employment Act. SIU is not a state within a state and anyone who believes so should brace him/herself for a rude awakening.
Statement issued by NEHAWU, August 28 2012
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