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The Federations of Unions of South Africa (Fedusa) and its affiliated trade unions, Health and Other Service Personnel Trade Union of South Africa (HOSPERSA), Public Servants Association (PSA) and the Suid Afrikaanse Onderwysers Unie (SAOU) notes with serious concern the ongoing threats against the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) and its CEO, Dr Dan Matjila said Dennis George Fedusa General Secretary.

Fedusa believes that Dr Matjila’s decision to speak to the media over the weekend about these threats may be used against him, and at worst, as a tactic to terminate his contract. Dr Matjila told the media on 24 September 2017 that politically connected people were trying to remove him in order to lay their hands onto the keys for the PIC.

Today, Minister of Finance Malusi Gigaba’s spokesperson Mayihlome Tshwete told eNCA news that the minister was taking the matter of suggestions that the PIC was being raided “seriously”, but then went on suggest that “heads would roll” for those who were leaking such information.

Fedusa interprets this as a direct threat against Dr Matjila – a threat, which concerns us even more deeply given the “urgent” meeting Minister Gigaba has called for tomorrow at the PIC to “address the matter”. It goes without saying that our trust in the Ministry of Finance to act in the best interests of workers’ pension funds, and therefore protect the integrity of the PIC, is yet to be proven.

On the other hand, Dr Matjila has, over the past three years, proven this intent.  We hope that tomorrow’s meeting will uphold the PIC’s board decision of 15 September in which it “expressed its confidence in the ability and integrity of the CEO, Dr Daniel Matjila, management and staff of the PIC”.

Should this not be the case, and our concerns that the PIC is falling victim to forces that are diametrically opposed to the best interests of pensioners and public servants of South Africa, we will not hold back from using the full might of our public sector workers in protecting what is rightfully theirs.

Issued by Fedusa