Cape Town – Economist Thabi Leoka has resigned from the boards of Anglo American Platinum and MTN South Africa due to health reasons and questions about her academic qualifications.
“On her request, Thabi Leoka has resigned from her position as a non-executive director of the company [Anglo American Platinum] and consequently the board committees she serves on, with immediate effect, in order to attend to her health and the questions she has been facing in relation to her academic qualifications,” read an Amplats company statement to shareholders, according to Daily Maverick.
Leoka claimed to hold a PhD from the London School of Economics (LSE), but the institution has found no record of her receiving such a degree.
She faces potential perjury charges for testifying under oath about her PhD before a commission in 2017.
Currently in the United States for medical treatment related to glaucoma, Thabi Leoka became a board member of the MTN Group subsidiary in 2019, The Citizen reported.
The revelation of Leoka’s potential false claims regarding her PhD has garnered significant attention in local financial news, prompting scrutiny of screening and vetting processes for senior leadership appointments in South African corporations.
Despite the controversy, Leoka insists that she obtained a doctorate in economics from the London School of Economics in 2008, as stated in her curriculum vitae, which lists multiple degrees she claims to have earned.
Follow African Insider on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
Picture: X/@NalaThokozane
For more African news, visit Africaninsider.com
Compiled by Betha Madhomu
