#TBT | ‘GBV accusations’, censorship & files: Inside Unathi Nkayi’s Kaya dismissal

The abrupt dismissal of Unathi Nkayi from Kaya 959 left Mzansi shook . A press release was sent out stating that she was fired with immediate effect.

Here's a look at how it all went down:

Unathi Nkayi gets fired

Singer, Idols SA judge, and seasoned broadcaster Unathi Nkayi was fired from her show Midday Joy on Kaya 959.

In a  statement shared with TshisaLIVE, the radio station announced that Unathi's contract had been terminated with immediate effect after two years of being on their platform.

“Nkayi's contract has ended prematurely due to certain conduct that rendered the relationship intolerable going forward. Kaya 959 can confirm that certain incidents had occurred, which resulted in the breakdown of trust between the two parties.

“The station would prefer not to be drawn into a debate around the details of what transpired, in the interest of both parties. Save to state that Ms Nkayi’s version of events has been carefully considered and unfortunately found wanting.” 

Radio Jock Sizwe Dhlomo rubbishes GBV claims

A report in City Press shed more light on events leading up to Unathi's abrupt dismissal. Unathi had commented on the article, which lifted the veil of secrecy around the matter. It was alleged that Unathi and Sizwe were involved in a heated argument and Unathi allegedly laid a formal complaint with the HR department, accusing Sizwe of verbal abusive and unprofessional conduct after he was late for his show.

Sizwe took to Twitter in a series of tweets and replies to set the record straight after the article started trending. He said he had nothing to hide and shared his version of what transpired.

 Unathi  finally breaks her silence

After Unathi has been quiet for what seemed like a long time, she finally broke her silence around the mystery of her dismissal from the show. 

Taking to social media, Unathi posted a video of herself reading a statement addressing the claims.

She claimed to have been silenced by Kaya and said she could not speak about her firing publicly because of contractual obligations freelancers had with the station. 

“I was specifically told that I cannot use my platform to share my version of events. The only matter I will address, because it is very important to me, is the theme of GBV that keeps on coming up.”

She alleged that “GBV had nothing to do with the matter”. She said she has handed the matter to her attorney to handle.

Sizwe Dhlomo released recordings and email communique

Sizwe then shared email threads and audio recordings from what transpired between him and the axed radio jock after her dismissal from the radio station.

Sizwe took to his timeline sharing audio recordings and emails to corroborate his side of the story and said he would pursue legal action against her

Kaya 959 denied censorship & Unathi backs her claims up with proof

In a statement shared with TshisaLIVE, the radio station said it would never attempt to restrict freedom of speech.

“Kaya 959 recognises and respects the right to freedom of speech as provisioned for by the SA constitution and for that reason, will not in any way attempt to restrict it for anyone.”

Unathi shared a screenshot of an email to corroborate her claims that she was silenced by Kaya 959 not to share her version of events after her dismissal from the radio station. 

The matter is ongoing.