Barry Streek
The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) has confirmed the firing of senior parliamentary official Nomsa Somdaka for using the services of five caretakers to paint her house and paying them overtime with parliamentary funds.
Somdaka was the head of institutional support in Parliament.
“Taken as a whole Somdaka had been guilty of dishonest and reprehensible actions,” ruled CCMA commissioner WF Maritz, finding her guilty of charges levelled at her in a parliamentary disciplinary action.
Maritz found Somdaka, who was dismissed on September 26 last year, had been an accomplice in procuring the services of the five workers to paint her house, presumably through Dennis Cook, then acting head of household services in Parliament. She then approved overtime payments for the work and “at least” condoned the use of an official vehicle.
l Meanwhile, Minister of Social Development Zola Skweyiya has announced an audit of the National Development Agency (NDA) “so that its problems can be made known to everyone in South Africa”.
The NDA was established in April last year to distribute funds to the NGO sector.
The Mail & Guardian disclosed earlier this year that less than 25% of the R340-million available to it had been distributed. In May this year its CEO, Dr Thoahlane Thoahlane, quit.