Nxasana, SABC executives to appear before Zondo commission

The Zondo commission of inquiry into state capture is expected to resume on Monday with the testimony of former National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) boss Mxolisi Nxasana and several top SABC officials.

Commission spokesperson Mbuyiselo Stemela said they would hear from the SABC board chairperson Bongumusa Makhathini, chief executive officer Madoda Mxakwe, and head of news Phathiswa Magopeni.

News24 reported last month that a concerted campaign against Nxasana to oust him from his position culminated in him conceding he would only go if he was paid out for the remainder of his term.

Nxasana previously told the commission about the two-year battle with now disgraced former NPA officials Nomgcobo Jiba and Lawrence Mrwebi who were gunning for his job.

He also detailed his efforts to compel Zuma to intervene in what he called interference in the NPA by the former officials.

As part of this, Nxasana told the commission that Jiba and Mrwebi peddled misinformation to Zuma that Nxasana was going to reinstate charges against him. However, Nxasana said he never intended to do this.

Despite Nxasana’s efforts to arrange a meeting between himself and Zuma to clarify the issue, Zuma was not interested in seeing him, he said.

Nxasana told the commission that he resorted to stopping Michael Hulley, Zuma’s former lawyer, on the N1 highway to try get him to arrange a meeting.

It was also during this time that Zuma allegedly wanted to suspend Nxasana pending the outcome of a commission of inquiry into Nxasana’s fitness to hold office – which Zuma himself established.

Nxasana said iit was only when he applied to interdict the suspension that Zuma agreed to meet with him.

“It was a very strange and trying moment for me,” Nxasana said as he tried to fend off rumours about him.

When he and Zuma finally met, Nxasana said he tried to explain himself – that there was a campaign against him that started before he took up office.

In 2018, the Constitutional Court ruled Zuma had abused his powers when he used a R17m golden handshake to get rid of Nxasana and appoint Shaun Abrahams instead.

The court ruled the payment was unlawful and ordered Nxasana to repay R10m, which was the amount he received after tax.

In Nxasana’s mind, however, this was not a golden handshake, but instead, he understood it to be based on the “the fact that they wanted me to resign” and he therefore wanted them to pay him for the remainder of his term, he told the commission.

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