'She knows I was not part of this thing. I don't know how she goes on and says I was appointed as a chair and did not attend meetings,' says Motau after Minister Nobuhle Nkabane named him as the chairperson of the independent panel that oversaw controversial Seta board appointments.
'Renowned legal heavyweight advocate Terry Motau has firmly rejected claims by Higher Education Minister Nobuhle Nkabane that he chaired an independent panel tasked with recommending chairpersons for South Africa's Sector Education and Training Authorities (Setas).
This comes just days after Nkabane, under intense pressure, finally released the long-delayed names of the panel on 17 June 2025 - a panel allegedly responsible for appointing 21 Seta board chairpersons. Among the listed names was Motau as chair.
"She knows I was not part of this thing. I don't know how she goes on and says I was appointed as a chair and did not attend meetings," said Motau, who insists he was never officially appointed or involved in the final selection process.
The appointments made by the panel included ANC politicians Gwede Mantashe's son, Buyambo Mantashe, former KwaZulu-Natal premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube and ex-ANC KZN deputy chairperson Mike Mabuyakhulu. All of these were...
