By Simon Nare
Former Build One South Africa (Bosa) chief of staff Tania Coenraad claims that she and other colleagues were possibly “sacrificed” to fund the party’s Johannesburg mayoral campaign for Nobuntu Hlazo-Webster.
She has taken the party to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) after her expired contract was not renewed.
In an interview with Inside Politics, Coenraad laid the blame squarely on party leader Mmusi Maimane, whom she accused of being a “weak and indecisive leader”.
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She said she and Maimane were acquaintances before she joined the party and “journeyed together over a number of years around faith, leadership, public service and a shared belief that South Africa deserved a different kind of politics”.
Coenraad said working closely with Maimane in the party became extremely difficult as she started to discover a different side to him.
“There were occasions when I experienced his manner towards me as demeaning, intimidating and humiliating. At times, when he asked me for something, I would find myself speaking too quickly because I was anxious about getting something wrong or anticipating criticism.
“Even something as ordinary as driving him became stressful for me. He criticised my driving to the point that I became nervous when I had to give him a lift. There were also occasions when I felt that my recollection or understanding of events was being undermined or reframed in ways that left me questioning myself,” she said.
Maimane did not respond to Inside Politics’ questions about the allegations, but his human resources consultant, Phindi Msomi, confirmed via text that Coenraad was Maimane’s former chief of staff and was later deployed to Parliament until her fixed-term contract came to an end in June.
“The matter is currently before the CCMA. Should any false allegations be made or published, Bosa expressly reserves its rights,” Msomi said.
Coenraad said that when she and two colleagues were deployed to Parliament, there was an understanding that they would serve in the party until the next term in 2029, even though her fixed-term contract ran only until 30 June 2026.
“We were told that we were going to stay with them until 2029, but that they can’t guarantee after 2029, obviously because they would need the vote, and the funding for the staff would come from the Independent Electoral Commission, Parliament and Gauteng provincial legislature.
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“So, we knew that we were working towards the end of 2029. That is the first thing. They said to us we are a new party, just give us an opportunity to fix things. We are in Parliament and we don’t even know what are our allocation looks like. At no stage was I informed that they are not going to renew the contract,” she said.
Coenraad said she was taking the matter to the CCMA because there was a reasonable expectation that the contract would be renewed and that there was material evidence to that effect.
She is seeking R1.44 million, which she said was the equivalent of what she would have earned through to the end of the parliamentary term.
She said that during a mediation meeting with one of the CCMA commissioners, the party was asked why it had given her a two-year contract when it would be in Parliament for a full five-year term. She alleged the party did not provide an answer.
Coenraad said she felt “betrayed” by Maimane. She alleged that Maimane wanted to speak at the funeral of her husband, who recently died of cancer, while the employment dispute was under way.
“I said to him ‘no, how can you come to the funeral when you haven’t settled me?’”
Coenraad said she suspected the party had let her and others go to cut costs so that it could fund Hlazo-Webster’s Johannesburg mayoral campaign.
She said Hlazo-Webster’s campaign was well funded, with support staff and a public relations team, and that more than R1 million had been allocated just for the launch.
“If you see the billboard that they have unveiled, it is serious money. There is no way that they can say they don’t get money because Parliament pays them an allowance and the IEC pays them allowance,” she said.
Coenraad said Maimane had on several occasions promised to pay the settlement but would later disappear and “ghost” her.
“He keeps ghosting me. What I want is accountability and a fair resolution to what I believe was an unfair dismissal. When I was dismissed, my husband was battling cancer, I was the breadwinner and we had three children depending on us. I have since lost my husband. I want the human impact of that decision recognised,” she said.
