Willemse, Botha And Mallett Agree To 'Continue Engagement' After 'Constructive' Meetings

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Ashwin Willemse, Nick Mallett and Naas Botha have agreed to "continue with a deeper engagement process" after a meeting with SuperSport staff and management on Monday, SuperSport said in a statement.
This follows Saturday's on-air incident, when Ashwin Willemse walked off-set citing racism against the other presenters, Mallett and Botha.

The three presenters, as well as MultiChoice staff, the director of the show, Anthony Banks, and the producer, Mandla Ntsibande, reportedly met to talk about the incident on Monday, SuperSport said.
The channel said the meetings were "positive and cordial with the presenters engaging directly with one another. There was a significant move in the parties finding common ground."
SuperSport and MultiChoice have requested all parties to continue "with a deeper engagement process to confront the complex issues which our past has thrust upon the workplace," the channel said.
"This is merely the first stage of the process to address the issues raised by the weekend's events. All the parties have agreed to continue participating in this process."
Willemse reportedly said he was "appreciative" of the opportunity to discuss the "complex" issues.
"We had robust discussions in which I aired my views. I'm very appreciative of the process undertaken by SuperSport. The complexity of the issues are very profound," he said, according to SuperSport.
Mallett reportedly said, "I appreciated the opportunity to air my views. Clearly there are issues that must be grappled with. I am more than happy to collaborate and contribute to resolving this matter."
And Botha reportedly said: "This was a first meeting and we all had our say, which was helpful. We've invested in a process to resolve matters and I'm confident that we will get a satisfactory resolution."
Meanwhile, MultiChoice CEO Calvo Mawela said the three "shook hands" and said there was no sign of animosity between them after Monday's meetings, according to Eyewitness News.
According to News24, Mawelo said, "What is encouraging with the discussions we've had is that Nick (Mallett), Naas (Botha), and also Ashwin [Willemse], were part of the discussions. They were all in the same room; they were courteous to each other; they shook hands; they openly [chatted]. There is no animosity that exists between the three of them from what we could see today."

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