By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Labour Court has set aside and declared Joseph Mathunjwa’s 2019 election as president of Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) unconstitutional.
The case was launched by Nkosikho Joni, Amcu’s suspended deputy president, and the verdict – which Mathunjwa may appeal.
Joni alleged that Mathunjwa, the union’s leader and founder,has been gunning for him since he first assumed the deputy presidency post
The judgment was handed down on Monday and sources from other unions say it explains why Mathunjwa was absent this week from rallies and talks that led to Amcu and three other unions applying for a strike certificate against Sibanye-Stillwater’s gold division.
Mathunjwa and Amcu’s treasurer-general, Jimmy Gama, already knew that they did not qualify to lead the union because they are no longer employed by mines.
The union had already received a notice from labour relations registrar Lehlohonolo Molefe, questioning the legitimacy of Amcu’s office bearers.
In his letter, Molefe threatened to deregister the union if it did not abide by correct labour practices.
This meant Mathunjwa would have had to contest for the general secretary post and Gama for deputy general secretary, as these positions would not require the two to be employed by mines.
However, Mathunjwa viewed the idea as a ploy to upstage him. He and Gama instead ran for their current positions and were elected uncontested
He also requested clarity on various unaccounted for amounts – including R15 million spent on NEC members’ salaries and R30 million on “other operating expenses” for the December 2018 financial year-end.
In his letter, Molefe also sought confirmation about whether office bearers were eligible for their positions. This has again put Mathunjwa and Gama under the spotlight.
The judgment concludes that Mathunjwa’s election as president in September 2019 was “unlawful, unconstitutional and invalid, and is set aside”.
Meanwhile AMCU’s Krister J van Rensburg said the judge did not understand the AMCU constitution.
“Mathunjwa remains president of AMCU. The issue with is that (he) was retrenched while they were full time office bearers. And the understanding of the judge and our constitution did not correlate,” said van Rensburg.