‘I was suspended for pointing out irregularities,’ says JRA CEO after his qualifications were verified

Suspended Johannesburg Road Agency CEO Tshepo Mahanuke believes his qualifications became the subject of scrutiny because he raised questions about material irregularities within the entity.

Mahanuke was speaking to TimesLIVE Premium after being exonerated of having allegedly faked his qualifications to land the top job.

The JRA appointed Majang Attorneys to verify the qualifications and his work experience. Mahanuke, 34, has been sitting at home after being suspended in January over allegations of misrepresenting his CV and qualifications.  

The CEO position required a bachelor’s degree in operational management or equivalent, 10 years of senior management experience and five of those in executive management level.

TimesLIVE Premium saw the investigation report dated December 22 2022 which found that Mahanuke had obtained a BTech degree from the Vaal University of Technology in operations management.

His honorary doctorate, which was also questioned, despite not being a job requirement, was also verified. It was conferred by Trinity International University of Ambassadors. Mahanuke stated in his CV that he received an honorary professorship from the same institution.

The report, released to the board, found:

• The qualification requirements of the position were lowered when the job was re-advertised in 2022, as opposed to the initial 2020 advertisement.
• Mahanuke met the qualifications required in the advert and did not misrepresent his CV regarding his VUT BTech degree.
• He did not misrepresent his honorary doctoral degree, however, verification of the professorship was unsuccessful.
• Most of his qualifications were confirmed and not misrepresented.
• His appointment as CEO of Gauteng Technical Manufacturing Initiative (GTMI) was confirmed by the chairperson of the board and CIPC official records.
• His references at GTMI were above board.

Mahanuke said he cried when he saw the outcome as the allegations had taken a bruising toll on him and his family.

Mahanuke believes he was targeted for challenging instructions from the board and raising questions about procurement processes shortly after taking office.

He applied for the job, advertised in the Sunday Times, in April 2022. He was interviewed by a panel of nine, including JRA board chair Tiyani Sambo and then transport MMC Funzela Ngobeni.

After interviews, assessments, vetting and competence assessments with Cogta, the board chair recommended him as the best candidate. The position came with an annual salary of R3.5m.

A recommendation report by Sambo scored Mahanuke as the highest candidate, as he had “hands-on experience, knowledge, competencies and skills in strategic leadership”.

“I went for vetting and an assessment with Cogta on municipal management and the Municipal Finance Management Act [MFMA]. I was called by the JRA and they sent me the offer saying I am the candidate. The chairperson then started negotiating the salary,” Mahanuke said.

He took office in August 2022 and was asked to attend and observe a board meeting that month which featured a string of instructions, such as the cancellation of contracts to supply bitumen.

“JRA has an asphalt plant that has not been working for quite some time and ... what the board did was take another company ... They rendered the plant redundant so they can procure ‘their’ favourite people. This cost R10m a week which was invoiced to the company.”

“As an accounting officer, I got concerned because the board wanted me to terminate [a]  contract so they can freely appoint the company. I asked why the deal should be terminated, but there was no material reason,” he said.

He had also suspended a high-ranking employee for continuous absenteeism.

“Suddenly, the board had a meeting. It seems someone faked a CV claiming it belonged to me then ... there’s an article about me that I am a dubious CEO with dubious qualifications. This was a smear campaign.”

By November 2022, he was placed on special leave over the allegations. His laptop was confiscated, and he was escorted out of the building.

He was suspended in January after a report found:

• He misrepresented the designation of a course he referred to as “Master Competitive Intelligence” from the Academy of Competitive Intelligence in the US. He only completed the core level of the course, whereas the title is applied to the advanced level.
• He misrepresented a position title at VUT which he stated as executive engineer specialist. The report found that he was employed as a reverse engineer specialist. The employment duration stated in his CV did not align with that received from VUT. This constituted “a misrepresentation of the duration of his employment”.
• Further, his salary was found to be at a midpoint when he should have been paid at a lower salary level.

Mahanuke’s attorney Nathi Mkhize is of the view that the panel did not consider his experience but preferred him as the best person for the job.

“They had to look at the overall picture and make a decision ... If his relative lack of experience is an issue, the people who recommended him as well as the board which approved his recommendation are the ones who should be held accountable. He did not impose himself on the employer,” Mkhize said.

The entire board has since been dissolved and a new cohort appointed early this month. The new board will do a separate investigation on the vetting process which was of concern, said chairperson Charles Cilliers.

He said Mahanuke would be allowed to present his case without prejudice regarding his appointment at the hearing. The outcome of that process would determine his future, he said.

“We would suggest allowing the entity and its new board the room to allow proper procedures to be followed without prejudicing the case,” Cilliers said.  

Transport MMC Kenny Kunene said a disciplinary process was under way and the matter was sub judice.

Mahanuke felt his performance at the JRA was not in question as he had the capability and capacity. He found it unfair that he resigned from GTMI after accepting the offer only to walk into a “lion’s den” where his job was at risk.

“The matter of experience must be measured by capacity and capability ... I am not being dealt with on the basis of my performance. I completed my 90 days [probation], and I have been performing. They felt the only way to deal with me is on the basis of qualifications,” he added.