Tourism DG rubbishes bullying allegations
In June, three directors approached the Public Protector calling for a probe and the DA says it plans on writing to Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille to ask her to investigate.
Department of Tourism Director-General Victor Tharage. Picture: Facebook.com/Department of Tourism
JOHANNESBURG - The Tourism Department's Director-General, Victor Tharage has labelled allegations of bullying levelled against him as malicious, untruthful and defamatory.
The City Press recently reported that Tharage is accused of intimidating senior staffers specifically women, even pushing them to resign in some cases.
In the first quarter of the year, three directors approached the Public Protector calling for a probe and the Democratic Alliance (DA) has now said it plans on writing to Tourism Minister Patricia de Lille to ask her to investigate.
Tharage has vehemently denied any wrongdoing.
READ: DA calls for probe into tourism DG, following bullying allegations levelled against him
"This is rather quite unfortunate that in the month of Women’s Month a story like this, which is malicious, which is not truthful and which is highly defamatory has actually been published with absolutely no shred of evidence and no facts provided. I have never in my entire life bullied anyone, not a man, not a woman. I have never in my life manipulated any process whatsoever," he said.
Thagare said staffers who had left, had by and large done so on good terms and that he still spoke to them.
He added that he's still in the dark regarding allegations against him.
"I have never formally received any of these allegations. They've never been brought to me by anyone to say: 'These are the allegations'. So, from where I sit, I don't even know what are these exact allegations," Thagare said.