A female administrator and whistleblower at Drakenstein prison says she is undeterred by attempts to silence her after the prison head had her charged with harassment among other charges.
Early last year Drakenstein’s prison head Ntomboxolo Kungune came under fire for allegations of abuse of power, malfeasance and fruitless and wasteful expenditure.
Makaba, who appeared in the Paarl Magistrates’ Court on Monday (27 October), said she was caught by surprise over the frivolous charges.
“In her court papers she is alleging that I have arranged to have her life taken. She said she is not safe with me.
“There is a total of five allegations. I just don’t have them with me now,” Makaba-Ngayo told the media outside court.
She added; “She is claiming that I have been harassing her for two years. If that was the case, I do not understand why she never reported it or addressed me personally on the alleged harassment.
“There is a lot going on in this matter. There is obviously the internal investigation going on that I cannot talk about at this moment.”
The matter was postponed to 8 December for Kungune to make representation.
“She was not in court today (Monday). Her lawyer attended on her behalf. The court, however, said she must be in attendance, hence, the matter was postponed,” Makaba-Ngayo explained.
On Monday EFF members picketed outside court in support of Makaba-Ngayo calling for the removal of Kungune.
In February last year Paarl Post reported on the shocking allegations levelled against Kungune.
READ: Allegations levelled at Ntomboxolo Kungune head of Drakenstein prison
A group of wardens in January last year wrote a letter to the then Minister of Correctional Services, Ronald Lamola, accusing the prison head Ntomboxolo Kungune of abuse of power, malfeasance and fruitless and wasteful expenditure.
The allegations ranged from administrative to housing complaints.
Officials accused Kungune of abusing her authority by removing competent staff who disagree with her and replacing them with junior, compliant officials.
She is alleged to have suspended an unusually high number of staff – double the amount recorded in the past five years – and to treat misconduct by her close associates leniently while harshly disciplining others.
Her leadership style was described as autocratic and intimidating.
Kungune was further accused of dismantling the housing committee that allocated staff accommodation within the prison precincts and personally assigning houses to favoured officials, disregarding established criteria.
Some families were allegedly evicted unfairly.
She reportedly renovated a departmental house without approval from Public Works, which funded the changes, and the house now stands vacant.
The wardens also made allegations that the prison’s abattoir, which supplies meat to correctional facilities nationwide, is said to be in disarray.
They claimed that experienced staff were replaced by untrained workers, causing severe production delays and inefficiencies.
Chickens and pigs are kept far beyond normal slaughtering ages, increasing feed costs and driving production prices up.
The Department of Correctional Services has in the meantime confirmed that it is aware of the allegations in question.
“These allegations were previously been brought to the Department’s attention. These claims were thoroughly assessed and found to have no basis,” said the Department’s spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo.
“Accordingly, there is no internal investigation currently underway against the Area Commissioner of Drakenstein.
“The Department therefore dismisses the renewed allegations as unfounded and reiterates that the matter was previously dealt with in full,” Nxumalo added.
This article has been updated since its initial publication.
