Actress Nomvelo Makhanya has shed more light on why she was fired from eTV soap opera Scandal!

The 28-year-old, who played the character of Lindiwe Maseko – Ngema on the sudser, left in 2022.

 

NOMVELO MAKHANYA ALLEGES THE ENVIRONMENT ON ‘SCANDAL!’ WAS TOXIC
Following her departure, Makhanya alleged on her social media platforms that Scandal! was a “toxic” working environment which almost led her to committing suicide.

Responding to the claims in a statement at the time, the production said it was “unaware” that the environment had become toxic for Makhanya. The show further said her character had been written off because it had run its course on the show.

THE ACTRESS SHARES WHY SHE WAS FIRED
During her recent interview on the Access Genie Podcast on YouTube, Makhanya furyher opened up. The actress said she was fired because she reported her director and floor manager for being drunk on set.

“I was written off a week and a half after I had reported them and I got called into the office. The news was delivered to me, and it was made to seem like I was the one with the problem. Like I was the one with the issues. But I took it like a champ and held my head high,” she said.

According to Makhanya, things escalated in the last few months. She claimed she was mistreated and everything she did was scrutinised.

“I stopped vlogging for my YouTube channel because I would be told that I am wasting production’s time. [And they claimed] that they constantly had to wait for me, which was untrue. They found little things just to make it seem like it was a problem.

“Even with live videos on my Instagram promoting the show, I stopped doing that. I stopped because it was like I was wasting their time and that was new.”

NOMVELO MAKHANYA SAYS SHE WAS REDLISTED
After her departure from Scandal!, Makhanya she could not find work. However, she did not have financial issues as she lived off her savings.

“I was redlisted, for a while. That basically means you do not work. The minute you show up, they already know who you are because they have been told. They wanted to prove that they are bigger than me and they made me, it is a power thing.

“I was very suicidal just after I lost my job, I have got extreme anxiety. So I heard voices in my head that would constantly tell me that I deserved it. I spent so much of my time, and I gave so much of myself to that show for 10 years.

“But what is strange is that I make a lot of money outside of acting now.”