Dali Mpofu, the suspended SABC group chief executive has come out with
guns blazing in his latest bid to return to work, highlighting
divisions between board members and asking the courts to force
President Thabo Mbeki and Minister of Communications Ivy
Matsepe-Casaburri to carry out their duties in accordance with the
Constitution, writes Edwin Naidu in the Cape Argus.
In papers lodged before the Johannesburg High Court on Thursday, Mpofu, who was given notice of his latest suspension in a letter delivered to his home between midnight and 7am on June 4, has accused the board of acting unlawfully, and without agreement, and has cited allegations of a cabal within the board.
He wants Mbeki to sack them for the chaos they have caused and Matsepe-Casaburri, as the SABC shareholder, to urgently intervene, especially with major events, such as next year's elections and the 2010 World Cup on the horizon.
The application will be heard on Tuesday.
Mpofu has claimed that board members are divided and that Ashwin Trikamjee, legal practitioner and Durban religious leader, wanted to resign because of the ongoing strife driven by Kanyisiwe Mkhonza, the board chairperson and Christine Qunta, the deputy chairperson.
"We are being pulled by the nose by two women members of the board," Trikamjee told Sipho Sithole, the SABC group executive in charge of strategy.
In papers before the court, he said their inaction was severely affecting morale at the broadcaster, as well as affecting the corporation's ability to prepare for elections next year, the World Cup and to move forward with plans for digital migration.
Mpofu's third court application follows two court orders that had reversed his suspension with costs.
Judge Moroa Tsoka had ruled previously that the board had acted unlawfully and declared Mpofu's suspension invalid.
Click here to read the full report, posted on iol.co.za.ÂÂÂ
