A senior ActionSA member has sent a letter of complaint to the national leadership against the party’s councillor Nkele Molapo and axed Gauteng secretary Abel Tau.
ActionSA regional council member (RCM) Phemelo Kungwane, who also works as an executive assistant for the MMC of social development and community services, Peggy de Bruin in the City of Tshwane, addressed the complaint to party leader Herman Mashaba, national chairperson Michael Beaumont, regional secretary Dipalo Mothibedi and chairperson of the disciplinary committee advocate Gillian Benson.
In the letter, lodged on Friday, Kungwane accuses Molapo of trying to convince her to claim that she was sexually harassed by former ActionSA regional chairperson Mandla Mhlana.
In the letter, which we have seen, Kungwane laments that Molapo and Tau were coordinating allegations to get her to lodge a sexual harassment charge against Mhlana.
“This serves as a formal complaint against Nkele Molapo and Abel Tau. This morning at 08:19, I received a WhatsApp call from Nkele. She enquired about a previous case which I lodged against the former RCM who is now a councillor in the City of Tshwane, Mandla Mhlana,” wrote Kungwane in her letter.
“I explained to her that yes, I reported the case, but Mandla has never harassed me sexually, he body-shamed me and he did this openly in the REC [regional executive committee] WhatsApp group. She [Molapo] replied by saying ‘I just wanted to check’, and we spoke of other things.
“I didn’t expect her and Abel to do such a thing to me, and to put the organisation into disrepute. I later saw on the group a letter written by Abel Tau, and I immediately realised that it is referring to me.
“I then forwarded the letter to the REC group and warned that I must not be used as a tool to fight the organisation. Later, there was a link that was sent in the group. I opened it and found out [that] it was an interview where he [Tau] mentioned that a lady was sexually harassed and silenced with a job.”
Kungwane explained further in the letter: “I want to inform the organisation that this is pure lies. Councillor Mandla never, even for a single day, harassed me sexually. All the complaints that I lodged against Mandla have got nothing to do with sexual harassment, but his treatment towards me as regional chairperson, and body-shaming.
“Nkele and Abel are both aware of what was happening, including the members of REC, as I reported my grievance in the meeting. At the time I reported Mandla in the meeting, it was during the elections campaign. Abel was a mayoral candidate, why did he not say or act then, but mention this now.
“What kind of a leader is he, who allows things like this to be swept under the carpet, if this was true. I am in disbelief and very shocked. But I refuse to be used.”
Kungwane added that she is disturbed by what she claimed to be lies.
“She [Molapo] is busy going around looking for something that she and Abel can use to fight the organisation. I want to believe that my appointment in the office of MMC Peggy de Bruin was on merit.
“Therefore, I won’t lie to protect Abel for the things he created for himself. I have never slept with anyone for any position in the organisation. My conscious and my professional ethics do not allow me to lie like this, or be used like this, against Mandla and the organisation.
“With this letter, I am confirming that all the allegations made on national TV are lies, and I am willing to defend the organisation, if needs be. I will forward the screenshot through WhatsApp showing the time I received a call from Nkele and the time I returned her call,” wrote Kungwane.
Molapo, a former DA member who is also a section 79 oversight committee chairperson for community safety in Tshwane, previously opened a case of sexual assault against DA Gauteng leader Solly Msimanga at Villieria police station in Pretoria.
It was reported in 2020 that Molapo was expelled from the DA after she opened a sexual harassment case against Msimanga, claiming that in 2014 when the DA leader was dropping her off at home, the politician rubbed his hand against her thigh before telling her that he wanted her [to have sex with him].
When contacted for comment at the weekend, Kungwane said: “I don’t know why they [Molapo and Tau] want me to do such. I will never fabricate something like that, where I will lie about sexual harassment.
“I won’t be used to destroy someone’s life to protect another person. I won’t say more in this regard, as this matter is between me and the organisation. This issue will be dealt with internally [in the organisation].”
After his expulsion from ActionSA last week, Tau said he had instructed his attorneys to take the findings and accompanying sanction for judicial review.
“ActionSA cannot purport to be taking a stance against me as showing commitment to fight the scourge of GBV [gender-based violence], because there are at least two other incidents in the Gauteng province where a councillor in the City of Johannesburg has been reported for sexual misconduct by members of the party during the official party work,” wrote Tau in his statement.
“That issue was swept under the rug. In fact, the chairperson of the disciplinary committee was lamenting at some point in the conversation with me that the party is unfair that she [disciplinary committee chairperson] cannot take a decision to charge this person and try them.
“Equally, a leader in the City of Tshwane, who is now a councillor, was reported by a female member of the party for harassment, and that too never saw the light of day.”
Beaumont said: “The complaint did not relate to any sexual harassment nor was a complaint of sexual harassment lodged with the party, but rather Mandla’s behaviour, which Ms Kungwane characterised as ‘rude’.
“She also made a claim regarding body-shaming by Mandla, however, this could not be substantiated from the evidence received. The complaint was referred to the provincial leadership to deal with the individuals, so this conduct does not continue.
“We haven’t spoken to Ms Molapo yet, as it [the complaint] was only received late on Friday. [We are] in the process of dealing with it. Each case is dealt with on the merits after a formal case has been lodged.”
Molapo failed to respond to detailed questions sent to her.
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