SABC CEO Madoda Mxakwe accuses sacked news boss of deliberately lying about him

SABC CEO Madoda Mxakwe has accused sacked editor in chief and head of news Phathiswa Magopeni of having deliberately lied about him in her grievance against him.

Magopeni was fired by the public broadcaster late last month after a disciplinary hearing relating to an airing of a Special Assignment episode which had been interdicted and should not have been aired.

She had filed a grievance against Mxakwe, where she raised several issues including abuse of power, alleged editorial interference and attempts to have her removed from her job.

In a 32-page reply, Mxakwe dismissed the grievances by Magopeni. 

“At the outset, I must stress that the grievance is riddled with factual inaccuracies, deliberate distortions of known facts, allegations deliberately made out of context and blatant lies, with the sole purpose to avoid accountability on the part of the complainant, and to tarnish my reputation.

“[It] is made in bad faith. The complainant refuses to accept responsibility for her actions and/or omissions, does not comprehend her accountability obligations and would blame everyone, any policy and anything, but herself. This is corroborated by advocate Nazeer Cassim’s disciplinary hearing report referred and attached to this response letter,” said Mxakwe.

He further slammed Magopeni filing the grievance only after the company had taken steps against her.

“I need to voice my strong concern that the complainant is abusing a legitimate grievance process to avoid being held accountable for her actions. I find this to be just as concerning as the allegations themselves, as the complainant is in effect taking her own wrongdoing and attempting to flip it into an attack on my character and my reputation - and in so doing undermines the actions I have undertaken to promote and protect the SABC. 

“This is an abuse of her position, an abuse of privilege, and speaks volumes about her true interests and her professed commitment to the sanctity of the SABC’s news processes. In addition, the complainant is being disingenuous in her attack, and is using the incidents referred to in her complaint to assassinate my good character and reputation, built over many years of consistent hard work and ethical leadership, both locally and internationally,” said Mxakwe.

He said that in her complaint, Magopeni showed a complete lack of understanding of accountability.

“This has been compounded by her conduct during the issues and events in question, and her enthusiasm for taking this issue into the public domain – regardless of the damage this may cause to the SABC. 

“All of this leaves me asking a fundamental question: have the complainant’s actions genuinely been in support of the interests of the SABC and editorial integrity – or is there more at play here?” said Mxakwe.

He said he had a professional and cordial relationship with Magopeni and denied having interfered in editorial decisions.

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