Sowetan (Hlengiwe Nhlabathi - Political Reporter)
Friday, 31 October 2014
The net is closing in on SABC board chairwoman Ellen Tshabalala as more proof emerges that her claim that she has academic qualifications is a lie. Tshabalala, who interdicted a parliamentary hearing probing her qualifications, was yesterday dealt a blow when a second report showed that her CV could have been decorated to make her more qualified for her job. A verification certificate of her credentials, commissioned by the DA, shows that her postgraduate diploma in labour relations with Unisa is "pending". This means Tshabalala did not complete her studies after registering in 2000.
In her CV, she also claims to have obtained a BCom degree from Unisa, but there were inconsistencies when the qualification was tested. "According to the institute, the candidate was last registered in 1996, qualification incomplete," reads a credential verification certificate by an independent company, Managed Integrity Evaluation, after checking Tshabalala`s qualifications against the National Qualifications Register (NQR™). This was similar to a letter issued by Unisa when the scandal broke in July. The letter from Unisa read: "According to our records, no qualifications were awarded to the mentioned individual."
DA MP Gavin Davis plans to submit findings from its independent probe as evidence when the parliamentary inquiry resumes. "The evidence is mounting that Ms Tshabalala lied to parliament about her qualifications ... it is unfortunate that, instead of cooperating with the inquiry, Ms Tshabalala has deployed high-powered lawyers to frustrate and delay the process," said Davis. Both SABC spokesman Kaizer Kganyago and Tshabalala`s lawyer Michael Tinley refused to comment.
