Lawyers representing fired ANC staffer Carl Niehaus and his former colleague MacDonald Mathabe have sent a letter of demand to the party officials to pay their outstanding salaries.
The letter of demand from Mabuza Attorneys, representing the duo, was sent earlier on Thursday and addressed to Deputy Secretary-General of the ANC, Jessie Duarte.
The letter demands the ANC honour its liabilities, and in the event of failing to do so, the duo will institute proceedings to declare the ANC insolvent and to be sequestrated.
The ANC has not yet responded to media queries regarding the letter.
According to the letter, from about June 2018, without notifying employees, the ANC stopped paying employee benefits, and Niehaus and Mathabe only became aware of this after other employees died and their families could not claim pension benefits.
They claim their medical aids were also suspended.
In addition to the non-payment of benefits, Niehaus and Mathabe and other employees claim they last received a regular monthly salary some four months ago.
“The situation is untenable and has put our clients in grave risk, their medical insurance has been suspended and, they have fallen behind on their bonds and vehicle payments and face the possibility of evictions and repossessions, and they are unable to provide for the needs of their families,” the letter stated.
The letter further states that the ANC should pay all outstanding salaries to Niehaus and Mathabe within 10 days.
If the party fails to meet their demands, the duo plan to institute proceedings to declare the ANC insolvent and to be sequestrated. Additional steps which may follow will include approaching the IEC for dissolution and deregistration of the party, the letter stated.
The legal letter of demand follows on the criminal charges that Niehaus and Mathabe have laid against the national office-bearers of the ANC and the party itself.
In addition, Niehaus and Mathabe – who work in the office of suspended secretary-general Ace Magashule – have laid an official complaint against the party’s national office-bearers with the public protector.
In their official complaint to the public protector, Niehaus requests advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s office to urgently investigate why the relevant government institutions “so dismally failed to carry out their legal duties and failed to protect my interests and the interests of other employees of the ANC”.
“I furthermore request that the Public Protector investigate whether the ANC or members of the ANC influenced these government institutions not to carry out their legal obligations and thus failed to act against the ANC,” his complaint read.
kailene.pillay@inl.co.za
Political Bureau