Minister orders probe into shambles at the post office
Communications Minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri on Friday promised “no individual will be spared”, as she announced details of a far-reaching probe into the turbulence and infighting at the SA Post Office.
The turmoil at the board of the Post Office and allegations of corruption at the top have threatened to undo the improvements in service in recent years as it finally returned to profitability after years of wallowing deep in the red.
Matsepe-Casaburri stepped in this week to calm tensions at the Post Office board which had simmered in recent weeks, but boiled over last week when CEO Khutso Mampeule was “suspended” from his post after he refused to take a “leave of absence”.
Bickering has been the order of the day since news surfaced two months ago that Mampeule had laid a criminal complaint against his predecessor, Maanda Manyatshe, over tender irregularities.
The person she appointed to do the probe is Andrew Maralack of auditing firm SizweNtsaluba VSP Forensics to investigate the matter. Maralack is also a director on the board of the SA Broadcasting Corporation, another under-fire institution that falls under Matsepe-Casaburri’s portfolio.
There will be two-prongs to the probe. Firstly, Maralack will investigate “governance issues”, a broad topic that is expected to include the allegations against Manyatshe, the manner in which they were made, conflicts of interest at the board level, and the counter-allegations against Mampeule.
Next will be a look at management issues, including low staff morale. Matsepe-Casaburri said the probe would be treated urgently “to avoid lowering of staff morale and to restore corporate governance”.
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