44-year-old manager to appear in court for assualting and trying to bribe labour inspectors
A 44-year-old manager is set to appear in court later this month after he was arrested and charged for allegedly assaulting and trying to bribe a labour inspector in Port Shepstone, South of KwaZulu-Natal.
The incident occurred earlier last month at Royal Diaper, a wholesale and retail company, where two female labour inspectors were conducting their duties. It is alleged that during the inspection, the manager, Lari Adam, asked the inspectors to his office where he offered them an unspecified amount of money to stop the inspection.
When the inspectors rejected the bribe and went to interview the workers, Adam is alleged to have demanded that they leave but the inspectors declined, saying they were conducting their duties in line with the law.
It is alleged that an argument ensued and Adam slapped one of the inspectors. The two inspectors left and reported the matter to the police who arrested and charged Adam. He appeared in the Port Shepstone Magistrates Court and case was postponed to 24 October 2017.
KwaZulu-Natal Chief Inspector, Edward Khambula, has commended the inspectors for rejecting the bribe and condemned the assault in the strongest possible terms.
"First and foremost, we strongly denounce the assault and intimidation of our inspectors and view it as an attack on the Department.
Equally, we always expect our inspectors to be dedicated and honest when conducting their inspections. These two inspectors are a shining example of how labour inspectors must conduct themselves in the interest of workers rights and they have our full support in this matter.
We therefore, urge employers to refrain from intimidating and trying to bribe our inspectors because they will face the long arm of the law and we hope this arrest will serve as a deterrent to employers thinking of committing similar offences,” said Khambula.
He also commended the police for acting swiftly by arresting the suspect.
For more information:
Lungelo Mkamba
Provincial Spokesperson
Cell: 079 889 0719
Teboho Thejane
Departmental Spokesperson
Cell: 082 697 0694
