Woolies bosses in lion's den

01 December 2015 - 02:15 By Philani Nombembe

Woolworths' annual general meeting in Cape Town yesterday made the jeering in parliament seem like child's play. Accusations of cellphone bugging, media gagging and trade with Israel dominated after National Coalition 4 Palestine and #BoycottWoolworths activists bought single shares so that they could attend the AGM at Woolworths' head office.Board chairman Simon Susman and group CEO Ian Moir fielded questions amid loud heckling.Responding to claims that Woolworths tapped activists' cellphones, Susman said: "If you know Woolworths is tapping phones, please let us know."A member of the Young Communist League claimed that media houses had been threatened by the withdrawal of Woolworths advertisingMoir said he was not aware of such intimidation and would "act if that is the case".He said the political campaign against it had had no significant effect on its results."Profit is up by 20%, sales are above the rest of the marketplace and our share price has risen by nearly 30% in the past 12 months."..

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