A case of intimidation and trespassing has been opened by Pacofs. According to a statement by Pacofs, this comes after the Mangaung Concerned Community (MCC) over-powered Pacofs’ security, broke into the building, and forcibly evicted staff from their offices.
An incident occurred last week Friday when one of the Pacofs executives was ambushed and his vehicle surrounded by a large contingent of unknown men. “These men trespassed by entering the private parking area and overpowering the female security on duty. Having failed to overpower the Pacofs executive, the group then started threatening staff inside the building and putting papers at the entrance doors threatening to burn down the building. The response of the public order police was swift, however, no action has been taken against the perpetrators,” the statement issued by Pacofs reads.
Pacofs says it received notification via a letter from an attorney about a case of sexual harassment. When the new Pacofs council took office, it obtained the assistance of one of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture’s legal advisers to independently investigate the matter and assist the employee with the lodging of a grievance. Despite a number of written exchanges, the council has been informed that the employee has not as yet lodged a grievance of sexual harassment. The most important activity, according to Pacofs, is for the matter to be investigated in confidence and in an independent manner.
One of the MCC leaders, Donald Constable, told Bloemfontein Courant they believe the charge that Pacofs has laid against them is only to try and deter them from what they are busy with. He said they are planning to lay criminal charges against the CEO and CFO of Pacofs today. “Our grievances against the CEO of Pacofs include her selling two trucks belonging to Pacofs without following the proper procedures, and her holding two CEO positions in the city.”
Constable added they will have a meeting with the relevant stakeholders tomorrow at 11:00 and from there a way forward will be paved.
Sazly Hartzenberg
