SAMWU Demands King Sabatha Dalindyebo Municipality Restarts Interviews For Top Job, Claims one Candidate was Given Questions in Advance

SIHLE MAVUSO|April 4, 2025

RESTART DEMAND: The South African Municipal Workers’ Union (SAMWU) is calling for King Sabatha Dalindyebo Municipality to restart interviews for the Chief Risk Officer position after allegations surfaced that one candidate was given interview questions in advance. Photo: SAMWU

The South African Municipal Workers’ Union (SAMWU) has locked horns with the King Sabatha Dalindyebo Local Municipality over the process that was followed to hire a Chief Risk Officer.

The COSATU affiliated union claims that the process was flawed as one of the candidates was allegedly given the interview questions in advance and the panel that conducted the interviews displayed naked bias.

This is contained in a letter the union wrote to the Municipal Manager (MM) Ngamela Pakade, dated 2 April 2025. The municipality is anchored in Umthatha in the Eastern Cape.

“South African Municipal Workers’ Union King Sabata Dalindyebo Municipality local is appalled by the behaviour of a panel constituted to interview candidates for the post of Chief Risk Officer, on Friday 01 November 2024 at Mthatha stadium.

“Hereunder are some of the points that make us believe the process was fraught with unfairness: A Samwu observer present on the day registered a concern regarding possible unfairness towards the internal candidate and requested fairness for all candidates. Interviews proceeded smoothly until one of the candidates his (sic) answers were exactly the same as those in the memo of possible answers that we were given prior to commencement of the process,” reads the Samwu letter.

Moreover, the union said the panel showed that it had a predetermined interest in the interview and could not hide its joy.

“At the end of the interviews the panel couldn’t hide their interest in the above candidate and were quick to go for scores as opposed to consensus as normally happens as per paragraph 4.4.6(r) of KSD HR policy. The candidate was the obvious winner given his recital of the question/answer memo and we immediately reminded them of our earlier concern and immediately disputed the outcome of the interviews,” the union said in the letter where it registered its complaint.

In a response to the African Times, the KSD municipality denied the allegations by SAMWU, saying the complaint is baseless.

“We have no evidence & have not been provided with any by SAMWU to substantiate that allegation & therefore we have no reason to doubt the integrity of the panel & individuals that conducted the interview process. It would be fallacious of the Municipality to restart the process on the baseless allegations & as a matter of principle by the time the dispute was submitted the interview report & appointment had already been processed so SAMWU has been advised accordingly,” the municipality said.