Hlaudi must pay protest ban case costs

Former SABC chief operating officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng has failed to escape personal liability for the legal costs associated with a 2016 on-air ban on protests.

The Constitutional Court finalised the matter on Monday.

“The Constitutional Court has considered this leave to appeal against the ruling.

“It has concluded that the application be dismissed as it bears no prospect of success‚” the judgment reads.

The application was dismissed with costs.

The Labour Court had initially ordered Motsoeneng to pay personally for the legal costs associated with the ban‚ which had resulted in eight journalists – the so-called SABC eight – being fired unlawfully at the time.

Motsoeneng has been appealing against that ruling.

In June‚ Anton van der Bijl‚ head of Solidarity’s labour law division‚ said Motsoeneng was simply postponing the inevitable.

“He is playing a cat-andmouse game with the courts‚ but he will back himself into a corner yet again‚” Van der Bijl said at the time.

“Solidarity has repeatedly indicated that it will not rest until Motsoeneng has paid the costs in his personal capacity.

“This is what the court had ordered. We are looking forward to opposing him in the highest court in the country.”