Court rules on Mohlala’s fate
The National Consumer Commissioner, Mamodupi Mohlala-Mulaudzi was given her fate on Friday (18 May 2012) over whether she should have been consulted before her position was advertised.
The Labour Court ruled that Trade and Industry Minister Rob Davies’s decision to tell Mohlala-Mulaudzi on “February 3 2012 that he was not going to renew or extend her contract, was in breach of his obligation to confer with her in writing [the reasons for this decision].”
It ordered Davies to notify Mohlala-Mulaudzi of his proposed intentions regarding the renewal, extension or nonrenewal of her contract and to give reasons for his decision. Mohlala-Mulaudzi was given ten days to respond to this on receipt of his communication.
The court also found that Mohlala-Mulaudzi’s contract does end on September 3, and once due process is followed, the dti can decide whether or not to renew her contract; until that time, the recruitment process must be suspended.
Mohlala-Mulaudzi said she was confident that her contract will be renewed once the consultation process has been completed as she has “met and exceeded all her key performance indicators”.
Each party was requested to pay their own costs.
Sidwell Medupe, the dti’s spokesperson, said “the decision of the Labour Court this morning [Friday] relating to the contract of the NCC commissioner confirms that the term of the NCC commissioner ends in September 2012. The dti accepts the decision relating to the procedural aspect.”
In a statement from the dti late Friday, it added: “the court has vindicated the minister in so far as the term of Mohlala’s contract is concerned. The court has made it clear the contract of employment with Mohlala as a commissioner, comes to an end on the 3rd of September 2012, therefore the dti’s interpretation of the contractual term is correct.”
“Mohlala‘s contention throughout was that her contract was for a five year period. This was at the heart of the dispute between the parties.”
“Once the minister filed his opposing affidavit, Mohlala changed her argument to that of not having been consulted. In terms of the court order, the only step that the minister must take, is to consult with Mohlala, in writing, prior to the minister taking a final decision as to whether to retain her or not. Depending on the Minister’s decision, the recruitment process may be embarked upon.”
On Monday, the dti in a statement said it had noted “with great concern reports published in the weekend newspapers and numerous broadcast media claiming that the National Consumer Commissioner Ms Mamodupi Mohlala-Mulaudzi has been fired by the department through a newspaper advertisement.”
It said Mohlala-Mulaudzi’s tenure as a commissioner of the National Consumer Commission was set to expire on September 3 2012, and that Mohlala-Mulaudzi assumed the position as a result of an out-of-court settlement in a matter between her and the Department of Communications.
“The then-Minister of public service and administration, Mr Richard Baloyi and the minister of trade and industry, Dr Rob Davies, agreed to offer Ms Mohlala-Mulaudzi a position as a commissioner until her contract with government as a director-general expired. In a letter that Minister Davies wrote to Ms Mohlala-Mulaudzi in February this year, he brought it to her attention that her contract, whose term was from November 1 2010 to September 3 2012 as per her appointment letter, would not be automatically renewed.
“Minister Davies stipulated in the letter that in the interest of good governance, and in line with the Consumer Protection Act, the position of the National Consumer Commissioner would be advertised and Mohlala-Mulaudzi was welcome to apply. To this end, the dti placed the advert in the newspapers for the position of the National Consumer Commissioner.”
The NCC became operational on April 1 2011. Since Mohlala-Mulaudzi’s reign the NCC has issued compliances on Auction Alliance, City of Joburg, vehicle manufacturers and telecommunications, among others. However, the majority of these notices will be appealed at the consumer tribunal.
Source: Moneyweb
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