I am no racist or sexist, says Mark Lamberti
Imperial boss puts a positive spin on high court ruling
Newly appointed Eskom board member and Imperial CEO Mark Lamberti is adamant that he has not been found to have been racist or sexist by the North Gauteng High Court. In an e-mail sent to Imperial staff on Thursday‚ Lamberti said his reference to experienced chartered accountant Adila Chowan as a "female employment equity" candidate was not intended to demean her. "My statement‚ intended to indicate attentiveness to the Employment Equity Act and society’s expectations of business‚ was not malicious or meant to hurt or demean her in any way, and I regret and apologise for any hardship that it caused‚" he said. Lamberti has, however, acknowledged that the North Gauteng High Court found that Chowan had grounds to believe she was being discriminated against when Ockert Janse van Rensburg — who, the court noted, "had no experience of the motor industry at the time of his appointment and little understanding of the Imperial accounting and the complexity of the transactions"—- was appointe...
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