Sport, youth and national service minister Agnes Tjongarero has fired the entire National Youth Council (NYC) board.
In a letter on Friday, Tjongarero cited various cases of misconduct, including dishonesty and the mismanagement of funds.
NYC delegates gathered at the NYC Rietfontein Training Centre to elect new leadership over the weekend.
The elections, slated for 15 December, were intended to replace the NYC leadership, including outgoing executive chairperson Sharonice Busch.
In her dismissal letter, Tjongarero listed nine reasons for firing the board, including: that the board disregarded ministerial directives, brought the ministry’s name into disrepute and mismanaged fund.
Other reasons were: maladministration of the institution, failure to commemorate National Youth Week and not following procurement procedures.
The minister further listed dishonesty, failure to disclose conflicts of interest and wasting of company resources.
“Given these serious breaches, the decision has been made to remove the board with immediate effect.
This action is necessary to restore the integrity and proper functioning of the organisation,” Tjongarero wrote.
The dismissal of the board now puts the pending NYC leadership elections in limbo. Before removing the board, Tjongarero issued a directive to halt the leadership elections, citing gross violations of the law by the board.
However, the board defied her order, in turn triggering its removal.
The ministry has yet to announce the next steps for NYC’s governance and the rescheduling of leadership elections.
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