Lumka Oliphant declares ‘I won’t be silenced’ after being fired by DSD

Embattled former Department of Social Development (DSD) communicator Lumka Oliphant has spoken out after her dismissal from the post, saying she will not be silenced despite what she describes as a campaign against her.

Oliphant, who has long been at odds with Social Development Minister Sisisi Tolashe, said she was moved by messages of support from South Africans who have faced similar treatment. The department announced she was fired on Friday in a letter signed by the directors-general.

“The many black professionals who have been purged, silenced because we fear for our lives and worry about where our next job will come from,” she said.

“People stand proudly and say anyone who dares to speak against an executive will lose everything. At this point, I should remind you that Mandela once said ‘if the ANC were to do what the apartheid government did to us, we must do to the ANC what we did to the apartheid government’.”

Oliphant said she had reflected deeply since her suspension and dismissal.

”I may have been clumsy in telling my story, but I do not regret my clumsiness. No one should regulate my anger or my pain,” she said. 

“We have been silenced because we worry about our next meal – our next job. We want to always be in the good books of ministers, even when we see injustice.”

Oliphant was fired as head of communication after being accused of leaking information about Tolashe’s R3 million trip to New York. She vehemently denied the allegation.

On Friday, IOL News reported that in a letter dated October 17, 2025, Director-General Peter Netshipale said she was dismissed after failing to respond to charges.

“You were found guilty of misconduct and requested to respond in mitigation of your sentence. You elected to disregard the opportunity,” the letter read.

Netshipale instructed her to return all departmental assets, thanking her for her service.

Oliphant said the trouble began after Tolashe took office following the ANC’s loss in the national elections and the formation of the Government of National Unity (GNU).

She alleged that Tolashe found the department with mostly acting executives, no permanent director-general and South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) CEO Totsie Memela-Khambula nearing the end of her contract.

“We watched helplessly as Ms Memela-Khambula was attacked in executive meetings by the new minister,” Oliphant claimed. 

“The onslaught intensified around August 2024 when she received several letters before her suspension.”

Oliphant said the Public Protector later cleared Memela-Khambula of wrongdoing, but she remained sidelined.

After her suspension, Themba Matlou became acting SASSA CEO. 

Oliphant said she refused to endorse a submission supporting Matlou’s counter-offer to join the Gauteng DSD, arguing that there were capable women who could act as CEO.

“The way they were doing things, it looked like Matlou’s appointment was predetermined,” she said.

Oliphant also raised concerns about ministerial adviser Ngwako Kgatla, who she said faced unresolved disciplinary charges transferred from another department. 

She said she informed Tolashe about the matter but was later accused of leaking related details to City Press, which she denies.

She further claimed to have warned state security about irregularities involving both Kgatla and the minister’s personal assistant, Lesedi Mabiletja, who is now acting chief of staff.

“I was particularly concerned about her qualifications and the Nyukela certificate, which has strict requirements,” Oliphant said.

Despite her dismissal, Oliphant maintains she has told only the truth.

“No one should silence our anger when we see injustice,” she said.

IOL News previously reported Tolashe has denied claims of irregular staff appointments, calling the allegations false and defamatory.

She told Parliament’s social development committee that reports about the appointment of her 22-year-old assistant, Mabiletja, as chief of staff were part of a campaign to damage her credibility.

A preliminary probe found Mabiletja’s appointment was based on a falsified CV and serious procedural breaches by then–chief of staff Zanele Simmons. 

She confirmed that the two were suspended, and Simmons has since been dismissed and is challenging the decision.

simon.majadibodu@iol.co.za

IOL Politics