Cape Town — Political newbies, Rise Mzansi, has called on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) to act on the claims that some companies listed on the exchange are implicated in a sextortion scandals.
Rise Mzansi leader, Songezo Zibi, led a picket to the JSE buildings in Sandton to give JSE CEO, Leila Fourie, a list of demands, raising concerns over jobseekers who allegedly forced to pay cash in exchange for jobs, EWN reported.
The party said industrial sectors, mining and retail in particular, were also breeding grounds for sexual crimes where unemployed women were exploited for sexual favours.
“There are men out there who prey on young women who are looking for work and they ask them for money and that they sleep with them, after which they don’t even give them the jobs that they promised them.” Zibi said.
On Tuesday, RISE Mzansi delivered a memorandum at the JSE, calling for an end to the sex and cash for jobs practice, especially in the retail and mining sectors.
RISE Mzansi’s National Leader, @SongezoZibi, led our picket, which was a result of many interactions with South… pic.twitter.com/8SNol5fKzD
— RISE Mzansi (@Rise_Mzansi) May 1, 2024
As reported by IOL, the party headed to the JSE buildings as some of the companies who practice the sextortion and bribery are listed on the JSE.
He said the perpetrators are “shady characters” who use their power over vulnerable job seekers in desparate need for a job to better the lives of their families.
“We are calling for JSE-listed companies, as well as the public sector, to identify and acknowledge that these cash and sex-for-jobs practices exist and to act to root them out; and provide channels, which job seekers can report them when they occur,” Zibi said.
The memorandum demands for sextortion to be identified as gender-based violence in the workplace, for a clear and visible disclaimer noting that paying to get a job is an unethical practice by recruiters.
In response to Rise Mzansi’s claims, Pheliswa Mayekiso, the Head of Group Communications and Stakeholder Relations at the JSE, said: “The JSE is committed to ethical business practices that prioritise transparency and integrity. Upon receiving the memorandum, the JSE will carefully assess its contents and subsequently formulate a most suitable response to Mzansi Rise.”
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
