The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) spent just more than R5m in legal fees in its failed attempt to get rid of its former CEO Zolani Matthews.
This was revealed by transport minister Barbara Creecy in a written parliamentary reply on Monday.
“The total amount of money spent by Prasa on its legal case against its former CEO, Zolani Matthews is R5.182,365.90 as of September 13,” she said.
“Legal costs incurred by Mr Matthews have not yet been paid as this is quite a lengthy process. The law dictates that legal costs be taxed and this process will commence once Prasa receives the legal bill from Matthews’ attorneys.”
Creecy was responding to a question from EFF MP Nontando Nolutshungu who wanted to know the amount the rail agency spent on its case against Matthews and the measures put in place to ensure there was no repeat of the incident.
Creecy said at a strategic planning session with all the entities reporting to her department, she had advised them to adhere to the rule of law and avoid costly legal proceedings where possible.
TimesLIVE reported last month Prasa fired Matthews for the third time after a labour court ruled in his favour. Prasa’s board of control announced it had terminated Matthews’ services and paid him out for the remainder of his contract.
At the time, board chair Nosizwe Nokwe-Macamo said Matthews’ termination was in line with his contract and in the interest of Prasa and all rail passengers. The rail agency remained focused on reopening all rail corridors and refurbishing more stations.
“Prasa has made significant progress in getting the passenger rail service back on track, with 31 of the 40 rail corridors opened and functioning at limited capacity. The board cannot afford to be distracted from delivering on Prasa’s core mandate of transporting commuters safely and cost-effectively,” Nokwe-Macamo said.
Matthews was fired by Prasa in 2021 for holding dual citizenship, which the entity at the time said was a material breach that he did not disclose because the dual South African/UK citizenship prevented him from obtaining security clearance.
In April 2022, retired judge Robert Nugent ruled that Matthews should be reinstated with back pay. Nugent said the dual citizenship was not a problem. But before Matthews could set foot in his Johannesburg office, Prasa fired him again — this time for “non-performance”, a decision the agency’s board said it had taken on November 29 2021 but had not told him about because it chose to axe him in terms of security clearance reasons.
The board said it had intended to reach an amicable agreement with Matthews but attempts to do so failed, leaving them with no choice but to terminate his contract.
“In compliance with the labour court judgment of 1 July 2024, Prasa reinstated Mr Matthews and paid him the backdated remuneration as contemplated in the ruling. Prasa had engaged with Mr Matthews and his legal team to discuss the implications of the judgment and to find a settlement. However, given that the attempts to reach an agreement have failed, a settlement is no longer an option,” Nokwe-Macamo said.
Prasa applied for a review of Nugent’s ruling, which the labour court set aside in July, stating that the contract remained in existence and ordered that he be reinstated.
Matthews demanded more than R14m in remuneration and benefits for the period that he was unlawfully dismissed.
TimesLIVE
Prasa spent more than R5m in legal fees in its bid to get rid of Zolani Matthews
Image: Alaister Russell
The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) spent just more than R5m in legal fees in its failed attempt to get rid of its former CEO Zolani Matthews.
This was revealed by transport minister Barbara Creecy in a written parliamentary reply on Monday.
“The total amount of money spent by Prasa on its legal case against its former CEO, Zolani Matthews is R5.182,365.90 as of September 13,” she said.
“Legal costs incurred by Mr Matthews have not yet been paid as this is quite a lengthy process. The law dictates that legal costs be taxed and this process will commence once Prasa receives the legal bill from Matthews’ attorneys.”
Creecy was responding to a question from EFF MP Nontando Nolutshungu who wanted to know the amount the rail agency spent on its case against Matthews and the measures put in place to ensure there was no repeat of the incident.
Creecy said at a strategic planning session with all the entities reporting to her department, she had advised them to adhere to the rule of law and avoid costly legal proceedings where possible.
TimesLIVE reported last month Prasa fired Matthews for the third time after a labour court ruled in his favour. Prasa’s board of control announced it had terminated Matthews’ services and paid him out for the remainder of his contract.
At the time, board chair Nosizwe Nokwe-Macamo said Matthews’ termination was in line with his contract and in the interest of Prasa and all rail passengers. The rail agency remained focused on reopening all rail corridors and refurbishing more stations.
“Prasa has made significant progress in getting the passenger rail service back on track, with 31 of the 40 rail corridors opened and functioning at limited capacity. The board cannot afford to be distracted from delivering on Prasa’s core mandate of transporting commuters safely and cost-effectively,” Nokwe-Macamo said.
Matthews was fired by Prasa in 2021 for holding dual citizenship, which the entity at the time said was a material breach that he did not disclose because the dual South African/UK citizenship prevented him from obtaining security clearance.
In April 2022, retired judge Robert Nugent ruled that Matthews should be reinstated with back pay. Nugent said the dual citizenship was not a problem. But before Matthews could set foot in his Johannesburg office, Prasa fired him again — this time for “non-performance”, a decision the agency’s board said it had taken on November 29 2021 but had not told him about because it chose to axe him in terms of security clearance reasons.
The board said it had intended to reach an amicable agreement with Matthews but attempts to do so failed, leaving them with no choice but to terminate his contract.
“In compliance with the labour court judgment of 1 July 2024, Prasa reinstated Mr Matthews and paid him the backdated remuneration as contemplated in the ruling. Prasa had engaged with Mr Matthews and his legal team to discuss the implications of the judgment and to find a settlement. However, given that the attempts to reach an agreement have failed, a settlement is no longer an option,” Nokwe-Macamo said.
Prasa applied for a review of Nugent’s ruling, which the labour court set aside in July, stating that the contract remained in existence and ordered that he be reinstated.
Matthews demanded more than R14m in remuneration and benefits for the period that he was unlawfully dismissed.
TimesLIVE
READ MORE
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Prasa board fires Matthews for third time, pays out remainder of contract
Prasa digs deep to axe CEO for the third time
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