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Zulu king’s prime minister mum about action against sexual harassment accuser, but threatens MEC

04/28/2024 01:54:40 AM News

King Misuzulu's prime minister, Thulasizwe Buthelezi.

Source: X




Sizwe sama Yende

AmaZulu prime minister, Thulasizwe Buthelezi, is apparently keeping his plans about how he wants to deal with a woman who levelled sexual harassment allegations against him in his chest.

The allegations became known after a female employee in Zululand District Municipality in Ulundi, where Buthelezi is executive mayor, wrote an email to various individuals in KwaZulu-Natal Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, the SA Local Government Association and national government in September last year complaining about Buthelezi’s sexual overtures towards her and other women.

The woman wrote: “I find myself having sex with him because he wields massive power and abuses [that] power over me and other ladies I’d prefer not to name because of the sensitivity of this issue.”

LITIGATION

Buthelezi has only so far threatened to sue KZN Health MEC, Nomagugu Simelane, for R10 million after she allegedly repeated the allegations at a rally in Vryheid on March 24.

Buthelezi did not respond to written questions sent to him on April 18, which sought to understand if he was suing the whistle-blower. Zululand District spokesperson, Zanele Mthethwa, advised that such questions had to be sent directly to Buthelezi.

In the letter to Simelane, Buthelezi’s lawyers from Stowell & Co wrote: “We are instructed that on the 24th of March 2024 during an ANC rally in Vryheid, you made certain untrue and defamatory statements, which are now circulating widely on social media, regarding our client in which you defamed his character both personally and in his capacity as Mayor, which statements were intended to injure his personal reputation.”

Zulu monarch King Misuzulu appointed Buthelezi, who is also a member of the clergy, as his prime minister in February this year, four months after the allegations were levelled against him.

Since then Buthelezi has had a torrid time managing the meltdown of relations between the king and the ANC’s provincial leadership. The fact that he is an IFP leader seems to have deteriorated the situation even further.

ABUSE BY SENIOR EXECUTIVES

The woman said in her email that she resorted to blow the whistle because she was desperate, distressed and despondent. “I find myself in a difficult position, being forced to sleep with the mayor against my will in order to keep my job,” she wrote.

She wrote that Buthelezi often threatened to destroy her career if she did not give in to his sexual demands, adding that he had also sexually abused other women in the municipality. 

Buthelezi’s victims, the woman said, included a granddaughter of the late Zulu monarch King Goodwill Zwelithini and the wife of an ANC regional leader. Both, she alleged, were fired after refusing to sleep with Buthelezi.

“If we fail to accede to the mayor’s satanic sexual desires, we’re ill-treated and told that we’ll be destroyed professionally,” she wrote.

The whistleblower added that there had been a high rate of resignations of female employees who felt unsafe because there was also harassment from senior male executives in the municipality. 

“They’re the ones suspending, demoting, displacing and even expelling employees. The managers have enabled a culture of women abuse to take root and grow. Most of the recent employment and promotions have been because of bedroom encounters.”

“What’s very painful and disheartening is that there’s a female old enough to be our mother who’s supposed to protect us, but she [herself] is involved in this sordid experience,” she wrote.

Buthelezi had previously issued a statement regarding these allegations. He accused ANC provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo and National Freedom Party councillors of launching a smear campaign against him.

“I encourage all those who have grievances to approach the department of cooperative governance and traditional affairs, as well as law enforcement agencies. I’d welcome any investigation into the said allegations,” Buthelezi said last year.

MORE CASES

The IFP’s leadership has been inundated with sexual harassment allegations against its councillors lately.

These include:

·      Former Abaqulusi Local Municipality (Vryheid) mayor, Mncedisi Maphisa, whom the IFP fired after he was recorded making crude remarks about women at a staff meeting, as well as at a community meeting.

Maphisa was recorded saying: “I’m the only bull that has testicles here. I mate with all the cows here. If anyone else wants to be a bull, either I’ll cut off his testicles or he’ll have to cut off mine.” 

·      Alfred Duma Municipality councillor in Ladysmith, Abbas Warasally.  He was recorded in March last year asking for sex in return for renewing a woman employee’s contract.

·      Another Alfred Duma councillor, Thulasizwe Khumalo, was forced to resign after he was charged with the statutory rape of a 14-year-old girl, to whom he had paid R100 and promised to build her family a house. 

 

 

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