Former Sunday Times editor and chairperson of the South African National Editors Forum, Mondli Makhanya, has been charged with the criminal offences of forgery and uttering, fraud, and attempting to obstruct the course of justice. The charges were laid at Parkview SAPS.

Bullard was fired in 2008 by the Avusa-owned Sunday newspaper after his column titled “Uncolonised Africa wouldn’t know what it was missing” drew public criticism. The case ended up in the court of arbitration of the Statutory Council, where his lawyer, Ari Soldatos argued that his client, an Avusa employee, was unfairly dismissed.

It is alleged that on 8 February 2010 during a hearing for wrongful dismissal brought by David Bullard against Avusa before the Statutory Council for the Newspaper, Printing and Packaging Industry – held at Fluxman’s Offices in Biermann Avenue, Rosebank – that Mondli Makhanya asked for permission to introduce a new document as evidence after the lunch recess. Bullard and his lawyers contend that the document that was submitted was fraudulent.

Contacted via email, Bullard had the following to say on the matter.

 It [the document] purported to be Fred Khumalo’s contract and the purpose of introducing it was to demonstrate that my contract was different and that, therefore, I couldn’t have been an employee of the company and thus the case would be dismissed. My attorney Ari Soldatos noticed that the contract was on AVUSA notepaper and dated 21st July 2004. He drew my attention to it and we both agreed that AVUSA had only started trading in 2008 which made it impossible for this to be a genuine document. Our suspicion was that it had been cobbled together during the lunch recess with the sole purpose of misleading the commissioner hearing the case.

The case then had to be reheard on 1st September 2010 at extra expense. Makhanya was called as our witness and claimed that he had “sought answers to the highest level” as to how this document came into existence but had received no answers. He claimed it was what the HR department had given him but conceded that no disciplinary action had been taken. (a recording exists of his testimony) On re-examination by his own lawyer he claimed that Fred Khumalo had looked for the original contract but couldn’t find it. He had apparently had the builders in and the implication was that they had stolen it (for what commercial gain we are unsure).

Both Fred Khumalo and Mondli Makhanya have signed sworn affidavits in front of a commissioner of oaths that the document is genuine. Unless they didn’t know the name of their employer in 2004 this is highly improbable.

The purpose of the fraudulent document was to affect the outcome of my case against AVUSA for wrongful dismissal.

Makhanya is compelled to defend the criminal charges, or plead guilty. Bullard has indicated that further charges of perjury may result from an investigation.

Bullard expressed surprise that news of Makhanya’s charges had not spread to mainstream media outlets.

Certain members of the media appear reluctant to report on this. Maybe they just don’t think a former ST editor and SANEF chairman forging a court document is newsworthy ;-). After all, it’s not as if he borrowed a horse from the Metropolitan Police is it?

Contacted by 2oceansvibe to offer right of reply, Mondli Makhanya said via SMS, “I will not be commenting.”