By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Union affiliates of the SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) accused the federation’s president Mac Chavalala of trying to elbow out embattled general-secretary Zwelinzima Vavi ahead of the elective conference.
Describing Vavi as an “upright and honest” trade unionist, the unions demanded that Chavalala retract his “misguided” letter circulated on social media to Vavi informing him of a notice to suspend him.
The unions argued that Chavalala had no constitutional authority to charge Vavi.
Vavi states the decision to suspend him is illegal and unconstitutional, deliberately vague and politically motivated.
In a letter sent on Tuesday, Chavalala informed Vavi of the national office-bearers’ intention to place him on precautionary suspension pending a probe into “… quite a number of transgressions on your part that are tantamount to acts of misconduct and misbehaviour and warrant investigations and possible disciplinary action”.
The letter sought to mischievously paint the Saftu general-secretary as corrupt. As we sit here, we have not been briefed on what Vavi has done…no one knows except you guys [media].
“The power to suspend a national office bearer is with the national executive committee of which we are all a part of…we have directed Vavi to disregard that letter and continue with his duties. The behaviour of president constitutes misconduct, “said Detawu (Democratised Transport Logistics and Allied Workers’ Union) secretary general Vusi Ntshangase.
Vavi is at work, said Ntshangase, and did not adhere to Chavalala’s Thursday deadline to give reasons why he should not be suspended.
The unions collective stance signalled divisions within Saftu that had pride itself as a militant and non-political partisan voice of the workers.
Without providing details, Chavalala said the allegations related to “alleged violations of the constitution, breach of administration and finance policy and disrespecting/undermining constitutional structural decisions and resolution”. He asked Vavi to explain why he shouldn’t be placed on precautionary suspension.
In Vavi’s written response, sent on Wednesday, he said he had attended a meeting with Saftu’s national office-bearers on Monday where the second deputy president, Thabo Matsose, proposed he be suspended immediately. The decision was supported by Chavalala and the deputy general secretary, Moleko Phakedi.
“Why are you now sending me a letter of intention to suspend me when a so-called ‘decision’ has already been taken in my presence to place me on suspension with immediate effect?” Vavi asked.
He claimed that the Saftu constitution gave its national executive, rather than office-bearers, the power to suspend office-bearers and said he was still entitled to continue working.
“Why must I even answer your deliberately vague, spurious, wild, and unsubstantiated allegations… designed to cast the net wide in order to justify a ‘political decision’ taken elsewhere which has nothing to do with the allegations?” Vavi continued.
The allegations against Vavi are unclear, but he said Saftu’s national treasurer, Motshwari Lecogo, had presented credit card transactions during their meeting on Monday that included R1,800 spent on airtime, the Gautrain and e-hailing service Bolt.
“It is clear that you are trying to lay the ground for a predetermined illegal and unconstitutional decision taken elsewhere,” said Vavi.
“There was not even the decency to ask me to explain the so-called suspicious transactions in the meeting.”
He committed to giving Saftu’s National Finance Committee a detailed account of the transactions mentioned at a meeting scheduled for Thursday.
Vavi launched Saftu in 2017 after his dismissal from Cosatu in 2015. He was general secretary at the country’s largest trade union federation for 16 years before he was sidelined because of a host of allegations, including having sex with a Cosatu staffer and corruption claims regarding the sale of Cosatu’s old headquarters and its move to new offices.
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