/ 20 October 2013

Fate of former NYDA head Steven Ngubeni to be decided

Former National Youth Development Agency chief executive officer Steven Ngubeni.
Former National Youth Development Agency chief executive officer Steven Ngubeni. (Oupa Nkosi, M&G)

Former National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) chief executive officer Steven Ngubeni will know on Monday whether he will be reinstated or his dismissal was lawful, the Sunday Independent reported.

He was fired earlier in the month after the board felt there was enough evidence he was guilty of financial misconduct.

He faced seven charges related to signing off loans, which were later converted to grants in three projects valued at over R30-million before the approval of the board.

The paper reported that his lawyer argued that the decision was taken without hearing his side of the story.

Senior legal adviser and company secretary for the NYDA, Neo Chuene, disputed the claims and said the hearing played out for more than two months.

'No serious intentions of responding'
The paper quoted his affidavit where he said Ngubeni's team had asked for three postponements in the matter, the last of which was granted as Ngubeni was not ready to be in the witness box as his lawyer had not consulted with him.

"It became clear, in the board's view, that Ngubeni had been afforded adequate opportunity to be heard on the allegations levelled against him, and that he had no serious intentions of responding to the said allegations," he said in his affidavit.

Ngubeni was expected to appear in the Johannesburg Labour Court on Monday. – Sapa