Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za

3-minute read
07 April 2025 | 17:22 CAT

Advocate Kgagudi Morota, CEO of Black Forum South Africa, leading the fight for accountability over IDT board appointments. Photo: @kbmorota on X

Black Forum South Africa (BFSA) has launched an urgent application with the Master of the High Court, taking aim at the Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure over what it describes as unlawful appointments to the Board of Trustees of the Independent Development Trust (IDT).

The BFSA is challenging the appointment of five candidates, claiming that the Minister failed to follow the necessary legal processes set out in the IDT’s founding document, the deed of trust.

Speaking to Radio Islam, BFSA CEO Advocate Kgagudi Morota outlined the organisation’s concerns, saying the IDT is a trust and must therefore operate in accordance with its deed of trust.

“The law stipulates clearly a procedure which must be followed by the Minister when there are vacancies within the Board of Trustees, guiding him on how to fill those vacancies,” Morota explained.

He accused the Minister of having a “total disregard of that prescribed procedure” and argued that this undermines the rule of law.

“As Black Forum South Africa, we had to stand up and say we cannot tolerate a situation where a Minister will circumvent due processes or the law for his own benefit,” he said.

The BFSA has approached the courts in a bid to have the appointments reviewed and set aside, maintaining that lawful and transparent governance processes must be upheld within public entities.

This latest move has brought the spotlight back onto governance practices within the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, raising fresh concerns about transparency and accountability in state institutions.

Morota emphasised that the BFSA’s action is not just about the appointments in question but about ensuring that principles of good governance and the rule of law are respected.

“We saw it fit to take him to task,” Morota concluded.

The matter is now before the courts, with stakeholders awaiting further developments in this unfolding governance dispute.

Listen to the full interview on Your World Today with Mufti Yusuf Moosagie and Advocate Kgagudi Morota here.