Mohlala-Mulaudzi: A rebel or a misunderstood patriot persecuted for good governance?

Suspended property sector regulator Mamodupi Mohlala-Mulaudzi’s public service career has been dramatic and, in the process, has inadvertently carved herself a dragon-like and maverick public persona.

But is the God-fearing mother a rebel or a misunderstood patriot persecuted for being a stickler for good governance?

“I do believe in God and I grew up very Catholic, but I hardly go to church. My grandmother went to church all the time and I think I’m using my grandmother’s credit because I didn’t go to church all the time. You do not need to physically be in a church,” she says with a hearty giggle.

Who could forget her 2010 epic David and Goliath tussle with her then boss, communication minister General Siphiwe Nyanda, that saw her axed as his director-general?

She had reportedly challenged Nyanda’s order that all department tenders should be approved by his office, remonstrating that this would be in breach of the Public Finance Management Act.

It was so heated that then president Jacob Zuma intervened and Mohlala-Mulaudzi, a lawyer by profession, reached an out-of-court settlement with Nyanda and was moved to head the National Consumer Commission.

But she would soon butt heads with then trade and industry minister Rob Davies and sought to interdict his decision not to renew her contract, but lost.

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Her stint as deputy chair of the SABC board has not been without drama, either, breaking ranks to voice some board members’ protest to staff retrenchment.

Mohlala-Mulaudzi, has had a stint in the telecommunications and broadcasting sector and has adjudicated high-profile cases at the National Consumer Tribunal.

She was appointed chief executive officer of the Estate Agency Affairs Board, now Property Practitioners Regulatory Authority (PPRA) in February 2019 and soon locked horns with board members. In March, the agency’s board placed Mohlala-Mulaudzi on precautionary suspension for irregularities relating to pension fund contributions and the appointment of six employees by the board.

But she would have none of it and instead took the board and Human Settlement Minister M m a m o l o k o Kubayi on, challenging the legitimacy of the board and, ultimately, her suspension but lost.

“My suspension comes at a time when [PPRA] is doing so much better. When I arrived in 2019, [PPRA] had a qualified audit and despite challenges of Covid, we still managed to achieve an unqualified audit in 2020 and 2021,” she said.

Mohlala-Mulaudzi said she was not the rebel that she has been made out to be, but was passionate about good governance and transformation.

She believes this has everything to do with her background as a child of activist parents, her strict demeanour, standing up to bullies and crooks as well as her robust pursuit of transformation.

Mohlala-Mulaudzi is currently studying towards an doctor of laws degree and her thesis is “Transformation: Real Economic Transformation – money in our pockets and roofs over our heads – property sector a case study in law”.

She generally prefers to read or play board games than do any physical activity and she’s very interested in current affairs and politics, particularly issues with direct impact on emancipating black people.

“I actually think I like to use my brain. That is one muscle that I use the most. I’ve always used my brains and I have always found that if I use my brains, I am able to actually achieve a lot of what satisfies my soul,” she said.

Mohlala-Mulaudzi said she believed this had everything to do with growing up in a very political environment, saying her parents were serious political activists in their time and continued to instil the principle of patriotism.

She also enjoys spending time talking to her four children, including her late brother’s three children living with her, aged between 13 and 21.

“When I have spare time I speak to them. I interact with them, I do with them what they want to do.

“Most of the time, they want to be taken to the movies, they would want to go and play, swim, you know, water sports, at least I have got very athletic children,” she said.

What keeps her awake at night is the fact that almost 30 years into democracy, only 3 800 of over 51 000 registered estate agents in the country are black.

She said this was worrying when the land debate has been going on for long time, saying land and property were intertwined and a catalyst to economic transformation.

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