Auditor-General’s accuser Mlungisi Mabaso axed for misconduct and dishonesty

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Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke’s head of human resources, Mlungisi Mabaso, has been fired after an independent disciplinary process found him guilty of misconduct and dishonesty, among other charges.
The Auditor-General’s head of human resources — or Chief People Officer (CPO) — Mlungisi Mabaso was dismissed on Wednesday, after an independent disciplinary hearing found him guilty of “gross misconduct” and “gross dishonesty”, among other charges. Mabuso was suspended in July after he unleashed a slew of allegations against Auditor-General (AG), Tsakani Maluleke.
As Daily Maverick’s Rebecca Davis reported here, the story begins when, according to the Auditor-General South Africa (AGSA), Mabaso had a meeting with Maluleke on 27 June in which he accused her of corruption. Mabaso made nine claims in total against the AG — the majority of which allegedly took place while she was deputy AG and which dealt with payments allegedly made to the former AG, Kimi Makwetu.
Maluleke served as deputy from 2014 to 2020 before she was nominated to become AG in 2020. She took over as AG following Makwetu’s death in November 2020.
The AGSA stated that, during this meeting, Mabaso effectively tried to blackmail Maluleke, telling her he “wanted mutual separation on condition he received a financial settlement”, in exchange for him not going public with his allegations about her corrupt activities.
The AG made Mabaso’s claims public in a statement earlier in September, while Mabaso was suspended on 5 July pending an investigation by the law firm Bowmans into both his alleged blackmail and Maluleke’s alleged corruption.
The legal opinion, which was heard in Parliament on 16 September, cleared Maluleke of wrongdoing and recommended that Mabaso’s conduct in making the allegations were investigated for possible disciplinary proceedings.
In a statement on Thursday, the AGSA said Mabaso had been charged with gross misconduct for threatening Maluleke, making several accusations against her and stating that he could cause her harm. The charge of gross misconduct included Mabaso failing to submit the allegations through the appropriate channels within the organisation.
“He also attempted to extort an unauthorised gratification from the Auditor-General in exchange for not disclosing the allegations,” the AGSA went on to say. This was in contravention of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act.
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Mabaso was also charged for “violating his suspension conditions by sending a letter to several staff members without authorisation,” said the AGSA.
Mabaso was further charged with “gross dishonesty” after ...