Post Office CEO to challenge suspension
The acting CEO of the South African Post Office Lindiwe Kwele will challenge the decision to suspend her a mere four months into her tenure.
Kwele took over from Mark Barnes at the helm of the Post Office in August.
Her lawyer Eric Mabuza confirmed the suspension on Monday and says her alleged failure to comply with procurement processes was given as the reason.
“She was suspended on the 20th of November 2019 that is three weeks after the new board assumed office. The new board assumed office on the 1st of November. There is absolute no way in which the new board would have been able to familiarise itself with the issues at the Post Office within three weeks.
“It is clear that the suspension was meant to achieve some unknown reason.”
Mabuza believes the reasons behind the suspension will soon become clear.
“The allegations are very vague and unsubstantiated, because she is charged with failing to comply with procurement processes and we know that it is not her role and there is a procurement executive who deals with that. All these issues are frivolous.”
The Post Office is one of the many state-owned entities which rely on government bailouts to stay afloat, having suffered losses of R1 billion in the 2018/19 financial year.
Mabuza says the matter has been referred for arbitration.
“We have taken and challenged the matter to arbitration and in the end, our client will be cleared of all these frivolous allegations she is facing.”