City Press reports that Minister of Social Development Lindiwe Zulu has been taken to the Labour Court by the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) for her decision to reappoint Linton Mchunu as the acting director-general (DG) in her department.

In court papers filed last week, Nehawu said it wanted the court to review and set aside the appointment. It was reported last year that Zulu had appointed Mchunu as the acting DG for the fifth consecutive year. The union staged several protests against the appointment, claiming that Zulu was in violation of public service administration laws. The union also argued that the minister had overlooked highly qualified candidates who were working for the department. Raashida Malatji of Nehawu argued in his affidavit that Zulu had flouted the labour laws when she appointed Mchunu and claimed that Mchunu did not meet the requirements to be the acting DG. He pointed out that the pattern of Zulu appointing Mchunu had been ongoing since 2019 even though Mchunu allegedly lacked the necessary experience and skill to occupy the position of the DG. The department of social development confirmed that it had been served with court papers and a spokesperson said they were attending to it.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Norman Masungwini at City Press (subscriber access only)

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