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By Mwangi Githahu 
April 2, 2021
The Executive Director of the Cape Town Real Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB), Mamodupi Mohlala-Mulaudzi, has said that Western Cape Superior Court Judge Derek Wille was wrong in his ruling on the defamation lawsuit between she and District Representative Emma Powell for a tweet.
Mohlala-Mulaudzi sued for defamation after a tweet from Powell in 2019 that read: “Today, a meeting between EAAB management and Nehawu shop stewards ended when the increasingly dishonest husband / partner of CEO Mohlala-Mulaudzi , allegedly entered the facilities of the state entity and produced a firearm. “
In a ruling issued on March 26, Judge Wille gave Mohlala-Mulaudzi 10 days to deliver the documents Powell requested.
The documents come from complaints filed about Mohlala-Mulaudzi and court documents in another defamation action she has filed against her fellow EAAB board member Eugenia Kula-Ameyaw.
In 2019, Mohlala-Mulaudzi sued Kula-Ameyaw for R1.5 million after she wrote to the Minister of Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation, Lindiwe Sisulu, alleging that Mohlala-Mulaudzi promised the EAAB board members R2m each from a R50m transformation fund.
Mohlala-Mulaudzi denies the allegations.
The requested documents also include the minutes of every EAAB board of directors meeting since Mohlala-Mulaudzi’s appointment as CEO.
Also on the list are all written complaints from EAAB directors, employees and others affiliated with the board of directors regarding Mohlala-Mulaudzi’s performance or conduct as CEO.
Judge Wille said that failure to make the documents available in the given time would give Powell the right to request the dismissal of Mohlala-Mulaudzi’s defamation claim.
In response to the ruling, Mohlala-Mulaudzi said: “Powell’s public assertion, as a respected MP, is blatantly false and caused immense damage to my reputation. It is fair to conclude that Ms. Powell’s actions were malicious and had the express purpose of smearing my good name.
“My legal team is of the opinion that Judge Wille made a mistake by ordering me to submit documents for inspection that include the minutes of each meeting of the EAAB board of directors, among others. Therefore, my legal team will appeal this order and move forward with the defamation lawsuit. ”
Powell states that the requested documents are relevant to his defense.
“You need to understand that there was a considerable amount of coverage about Mohlala-Mulaudzi’s tenure as EAAB’s executive director, which was allegedly plagued by controversy, discord and mismanagement.”
According to Powell, part of this coverage included a report that Mohlala-Mulaudzi was receiving board fees for serving on the SABC board while she was a paid government employee, which meant that she was, in effect, illegally receiving two salaries of two organs of the state.
Cape Argus
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