Thanks to a dire lack of capacity in Makana at a crucial time, disgraced former municipal manager Pravine Naidoo has once again drawn the municipality’s resources into fighting his assertion that he was unfairly dismissed from his second term in the city’s top job.
Thanks to a dire lack of capacity in Makana at a crucial time, disgraced former municipal manager Pravine Naidoo has once again drawn the municipality’s resources into fighting his assertion that he was unfairly dismissed from his second term in the city’s top job.
Naidoo was dismissed from Makana Municipality in 2014 and took the matter to the South African Local Government Bargaining Council (SALGBC).
After a disciplinary process that began on 18 February 2014, presiding officer, Advocate Paul van Rooyen, handed down his finding that Naidoo was guilty of misconduct in terms of the Municipal Systems Act.
In a document dated 27 February 2014, Van Rooyen said Naidoo had contravened the Code of Conduct for Municipal Staff Members. In documents that appeared to lay bare a trail of deceit, Council’s attorneys Chris Baker and Associates were unequivocal in their condemnation of Naidoo’s actions.
The documents and others relating to Naidoo’s hearings were tabled in a confidential session of an ordinary Council meeting on 12 March 2014. They described how Naidoo effectively drew up a contract with himself and created a false paper trail to fraudulently ensure a future financial settlement favourable to him.
“The employee’s conduct entailed rather significant dishonesty,” stated the document. In their representation on sanction on behalf of Makana Municipality, the attorneys say Naidoo, “…demonstrated that he cannot be trusted to carry out his responsibilities as accounting officer… “…It need hardly be said that it is untenable to have a dishonest and fraudulent accounting officer.”
The documents also stated that Naidoo could have benefited by more than R3m had his actions not been discovered. Documents in the possession of Grocott’s Mail indicate that former Council Speaker, Rachel Madinda-Isaac, signed an agreement in 2013 to pay more than R100 000 in legal costs, on top of a R3m deal with Naidoo.
The agreement lodged with the labour court, later found by Van Rooyen to be fraudulent, followed Naidoo’s dispute with Makana Municipality when he left office as municipal manager after a previous term, in 2007. The R3m was put forward as a compromise after his initial demand for a R5m settlement in respect of alleged damages.
Van Rooyen said he was satisfied that Naidoo was guilty of all the charges against him. “The evidence discloses that the employee obtained, in his favour, a very substantial settlement by dishonest means and in direct contravention of a resolution of the council of the employer. “He then attempted to hide his tracks by creating a false paper trail,” he said in his finding.
On 26 March 2014 Naidoo referred a dispute to the SALGBC contending that his dismissal was unfair. The dispute was conciliated on 2 May 2014 and a certificate of non-resolution was issued the same day. According to documents in the possession of Grocott’s Mail, Naidoo was obliged to request arbitration, if he so wished, of his dispute within 90 days from 2 May 2014.
“Notwithstanding the aforesaid requirement, he only delivered his request for arbitration on 18 September 2014, six weeks late.” However, when he delivered a condonation application for his late arbitration request on 29 September 2014, almost 60 days late, the municipality did not oppose the application.
Condonation was consequently granted by default. This was at a time of acute financial difficulty for Makana. The municipality owed their lawyers a lot of money and, consequently, the lawyers refused to represent them in numerous court cases. In November 2014, former administrator, Pam Yako, gave an instruction to Chris Baker Attorneys to oppose the condonation application and have it set aside.
However, the SALGBC ruled in Naidoo’s favour. The case dragged on following challenges, with various presiding officers pulling
out. Commissioner Van der Walt pulled out of the case because, at the time, he had also presided over the unfair dismissal of former strategic officer in the Mayor’s office, Mncedisi Boma.
The case was then scheduled to be heard before Commissioner Naledi Burwana-Bisiwe on 22 to 24 February this year. However, on the morning of 19 February, a letter was received from the SALGBC advising the parties that the matter had been postponed, due to unforeseen circumstances.
According to a confidential item discussed in last Thursday’s ordinary council meeting, the municipality has been advised that the matter will be heard before Commissioner Marion Fouche on 3 to 5 May. Speaking to Grocott’s Mail on Tuesday this week, acting municipal manager Riana Meiring would say only that there is a current case at the Bargaining Council.
“Further than that I can’t say anything because we are still busy with the case.” Meanwhile the Council of Makana Municipality has reappointed Riana Meiring to act in the position of municipal manager after receiving advice from the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs. Meiring has been acting in the position since mid-2015, with her term ending officially on Tuesday 15 March.
She was re-appointed last Thursday, 10 March in the ordinary council meeting after the municipality received strategic advice warning them against advertising the position ahead of the local government elections. She was re-appointed to the position for a period not longer than three months, starting from Wednesday, 16 March.
anele@grocotts.co.za
