ANC MP and Higher Education portfolio committee chairperson Teboho Letsie has been dragged into an ethics row over allegations that he publicly weighed in on a Construction Education and Training Authority (CETA) manager’s disciplinary case. The employee is now asking Parliament to investigate if he crossed the line between oversight and interference.
Tumiso Mphuthi, the CETA’s supply chain management manager, has lodged a complaint with Parliament’s Registrar of Members’ Interests, Adv Anthea Gordon, alleging that Letsie discussed her employment dispute on Facebook while disciplinary and appeal processes were still underway.
In her affidavit, Mphuthi takes issue with a comment allegedly made by Letsie suggesting that she “deserve[d] to be fired”.
“I regard this statement as particularly serious because my disciplinary proceedings and/or appeal were still subject to formal employment processes.”
Mphuthi says she did not authorise the publication of information about her disciplinary case and is concerned that the Facebook post prompted other users to identify her by name and job title while discussing her suspension and employment circumstances.
“I did not authorise the publication of disciplinary information on Facebook,” she said in the complaint dated October 11.
Mphuthi wants Parliament to investigate how Letsie obtained the information, whether he was justified in discussing her employment dispute publicly and whether his conduct was consistent with the ethical obligations of an MP and committee chairperson.
The complaint also raises questions about Letsie’s alleged correspondence with CETA regarding her employment, disciplinary proceedings and appeal.
“I am deeply concerned that Mr Letsie’s conduct may have gone beyond legitimate parliamentary oversight and may have amounted to inappropriate involvement in an individual employee’s disciplinary and appeal process,” Mphuthi states.
But Letsie has pushed back, arguing that the complaint does not clearly identify the specific provisions of Parliament’s Code of Ethical Conduct he is alleged to have breached.
In a letter dated October 15 to Gordon, Letsie said he intended to cooperate with the process but needed clarity on the allegations before submitting a formal response under oath.
“This letter is written in the interests of fairness and efficient processing of the complaint. It is not a response to the complaint, and nothing in it is to be construed as an admission of any fact, allegation or contravention. All of my rights, including the right to raise any procedural or jurisdictional objections and any defences, are reserved.”
Letsie wants the registrar to specify which provisions of the code he allegedly contravened, provide details of the statements attributed to him and clarify whether the matter has been formally registered as a complaint or is being treated as a request for an investigation.
He also questioned discrepancies in the affidavit, including the date of the Facebook post. Mphuthi’s affidavit refers to a publication around July 30, while the annexure list identifies screenshots dated June 30.
Letsie further argues that the affidavit paraphrases the comments attributed to him and refers to correspondence with CETA without identifying the specific communications, their dates or their contents.
He has requested an extension until November 13 to submit his formal response, saying he needs time to obtain legal advice and prepare an affidavit. His letter is not a substantive response to the allegations and expressly states that it should not be interpreted as an admission of wrongdoing.
The dispute stems from Mphuthi’s longer-running conflict with CETA. She says she previously raised alleged supply chain management and governance irregularities through internal structures before escalating the concerns to the responsible minister and the parliamentary portfolio committee chaired by Letsie.
According to her affidavit, the committee acknowledged receipt of her report, but she believes no action was taken on the substance of the issues she raised.
Mphuthi was suspended in June 2023. Her suspension was later lifted by administrator Oupa Nkoane, and she returned to work in March 2026, while her disciplinary proceedings had not been finally concluded.
- ANC MP Teboho Letsie is accused of publicly commenting on a CETA manager Tumiso Mphuthi’s disciplinary case on Facebook while formal processes were ongoing.
- Mphuthi alleges Letsie suggested she deserved to be fired and that she did not authorize the publication of her disciplinary information on social media.
- Mphuthi has requested Parliament to investigate whether Letsie’s actions crossed from parliamentary oversight into inappropriate interference in her employment dispute.
- Letsie denies specific breaches of Parliament’s Code of Ethical Conduct and has asked for details on the allegations and an extension until November 13 to respond formally.
- Mphuthi previously raised governance concerns internally about CETA before escalating the issue to the minister and Letsie’s portfolio committee.
