Latest news with #Motsoeneng
Daily Maverick
24-04-2025
- Business
- Daily Maverick
Motsoeneng is ‘abusing the legal process' with latest ConCourt appeal, believes SIU head Mothibi
Is former SABC executive Hlaudi Motsoeneng abusing the legal process by appealing against a ConCourt decision ordering him to pay back money to the entity? The SIU's Andy Mothibi told Parliament he firmly believed this was the case. 'We are of the view that Mr Motsoeneng is really abusing the legal process,' said Andy Mothibi, the head of the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), about the latest appeal by Hlaudi Motsoeneng against paying back money he unlawfully gained during his tenure as a chief executive at the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC). The SIU briefed Parliament's Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) – the public purse watchdog – on its investigations into the SABC and the State Information Technology Agency. Wednesday was the second day of hearings into the affairs of both agencies. On Wednesday, MPs kept raising issues around Motsoeneng and his court attempts to not pay back a 'success fee' for his role in securing a MultiChoice deal. In August 2016, Motsoeneng was paid R11.5-million by the SABC. Eventually, the high court would declare this transaction as unlawful and invalid. Motsoeneng was ordered to repay the R11.5-million – plus interest. This brought the total to about R18-million. Motsoeneng lost an appeal at the Supreme Court to overturn the ruling, as Daily Maverick reported in May 2024. News24 reported in 2024 that an attempt by Motsoeneng to bring the case to the Constitutional Court was rejected on a jurisdictional basis. In Parliament on Wednesday, 23 April 2025, the SIU revealed that Motsoeneng has now applied for leave to appeal against the ConCourt decision, which is being opposed by the SABC and the SIU. According to the SIU, Motsoeneng brought an urgent interdict to stop the SIU and SABC's execution and attachment of his assets. In October 2024, when the SIU's attorneys arrived at court, they found that Motsoeneng's attorneys had not issued and enrolled the urgent stay application. The SIU also said in its presentation to Parliament that on 13 November 2024, it submitted its input on the draft affidavit in Motsoeneng's second application to the ConCourt. During Wednesday's briefing, several MPs raised questions around the issue – even questioning how Motsoeneng could be appointed at the public broadcaster. Ultimately, Mothibi said the SIU was of the view that Motsoeneng was abusing the legal process. Mothibi said while everyone had the right to legal recourse, 'I am of the view that he is abusing the legal process' by going back to the ConCourt, even after the country's highest court had already ruled against him. 'It baffles me,' said Mothibi. He told MPs that he hoped the courts issued 'appropriate costs in that regard'. Daily Maverick tried to contact Motsoeneng – who has now turned to politics, forming his own party called the African Content Movement – for comment, but he did not respond to our communications on Wednesday. This isn't the first time that Mothibi has told Parliament about frustrations with Motsoeneng. In November 2024, News24 reported that Mothibi expressed his frustrations in Parliament with attempts to have Motsoeneng pay back the money. DM
IOL News
23-04-2025
- Business
- IOL News
SIU takes aim at Hlaudi Motsoeneng for challenging court findings
The SIU to seek costs against former South African Broadcasting Corporation's CEO Hllaudi Motsoeneng for appealing a ruling of the Constitutional Court Image: Picture: Matthews Baloyi / January 28, 2015 The head of the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), Andy Mothibi, confirmed on Wednesday that the agency plans to request appropriate costs against former SABC CEO Hlaudi Motsoeneng following his appeal to the Constitutional Court challenging previous adverse findings made against him. This development comes after Motsoeneng filed an application for leave to appeal to the apex court, subsequent to the SIU successfully overturning a R11.5 million bonus awarded to him, which must now be repaid. Briefing the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa), Mothibi said Motsoeneng was challenging their findings from lower courts to the Supreme Court of Appeal all the way to the Constitutional Court. 'He is going back to the Constitutional Court to review or rescind their judgment. This is where we will be qualified to say there is abuse of court process. We will ask for appropriate costs,' he said. Mothibi charged that Motsoeneng was really abusing the legal process. 'This is really to show that, to a greater extent, he really believes that either he should not be investigated. I can't just put my head onto it.' However, Mothibi said anyone has the right to legal recourse. 'It is his right to challenge the findings that are adverse to him. In the context of litigation process, I am of the view he is really abusing the legal process, particularly once the Constitutional Court has made a ruling,' he said. Mothibi made the comments when the SIU briefed Scopa about the investigations it has conducted at the SABC. The investigations emanated from proclamations authorised between 2010 and 2024. Chief national investigating officer Zodwa Xesibe told the MPs that a proclamation was issued in 2017 following a parliamentary inquiry into the SABC affairs. Xesibe said the investigation covered contracts, including the sale of the public broadcaster's archives. SIU legal counsel Ntuthuzelo Vanara said one of the matters related to the R11.5 million bonus paid to Motsoeneng as 'success fee' that was set aside. 'The bonus amount increased from R11.5m because of interest to R18m. Of that amount, there has been R6m that would have been paid from his pension benefit. "We finalised this matter,' Vanara said. However, the court had ordered Motsoeneng's legal fees paid by SABC be repaid to the tune of R1.2m. 'He had apparently used SABC to pay his personal matters with a personal attorney. We recovered R851 981 together with interest.' The former CEO lost an appeal bid and SABC pension fund payout to the tune of R6.4m. Vanara also said a R52m contract with Vision View was set aside and R7m contract with Mott MacDonald, among others. In a presentation to the Scopa, the SIU reported that Mjayeli Security was appealing a court decision that set aside the contract it was awarded after it was found to have come second in the winning bidders.
