Hlaudi Motsoeneng does not enjoy the protection of the African National Congress (ANC), nor has the party deployed him to the public broadcaster, chief whip Jackson Mthembu said on Wednesday.

The South African Broadcasting Corporation’s (SABC) newly-appointed group executive of corporate affairs was a “non-employee” who was given the post without due process having been followed, he told reporters at Parliament.

He called on the SABC board to rescind the appointment.

“It should not have happened in the first place.”

Mthembu said the ANC’s records would show the party did not deploy him.

“There are many other people that the ANC deployment committee might not have deployed, but who do wonderful jobs. I can’t say the same about him. There are many people who do wonderful jobs and are respected because of the work they do.

“I can assure that whatever protection somebody might enjoy, it will not come from the ANC.”

The party wanted people who were rationally appointed. He continuously referred to Motsoeneng’s appointment as “miraculous”.

Respect the rule of law

It was not only a question of protection, he said, but also of respect for the courts.

Mthembu said if courts declared his appointment as chief whip irrational, logic would dictate he could no longer be an ANC employee.

“It simply means that Jackson Mthembu no longer works here, finish and klaar. If we do something else, we are unlawful in our conduct. That’s my logic; let’s just respect the rule of law.”

The SABC board had a lot to answer for and the ANC wanted an inquiry into its fitness.

These included its appointment processes, and how Motsoeneng ended up back in a senior management position, after the courts had declared his appointment as COO unlawful.

Not fit to govern

The board had been summoned to appear before Parliament in October. Mthembu said it was “not fit to govern”.

Talking about Motsoeneng’s “unlawful appointment”, he said employers needed to hire the best- qualified people who would provide value for money.

“What has happened at the SABC clearly indicated that we are dealing with another animal. We need to use other instruments at our disposal, not your day-to-day oversight mechanism. What is that animal at our disposal? That animal is an inquiry,” he said.

He was not sure if asking members of the current board to resign would work, but they would try, he said. An inquiry was the next-best option.

Mthembu said ANC members on Parliament’s communications committee, who had previously been seen as shielding Motsoeneng, would do what was right.