PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed advocate Andrea Johnson as the new head of the NPA’s Investigating Directorate.
In a statement released on Monday, the president’s office announced that Johnson would start her work on 1 March.
She takes over the position following the sudden resignation of Hermione Cronje.
The Presidency said Johnson’s appointment came at a time when the country’s efforts were geared towards acting decisively against individuals involved in State Capture and corruption.
Presidency said Johnson was an experienced senior deputy director in the NPA with more than 25 years’ experience.
“She spent 10 years in the Directorate of Special Operations and has worked in the NPA’s Priority Crimes Litigation Unit and Organised Crime Section. She is currently serving on the NPA Task Force that is overseeing the implementation of the State Capture Report recommendations,” said presidential spokesperson Tyrone Seale.
Ramaphosa said Cronje had laid the foundations and now Johnson was expected to take the office of the ID to the next phase.
“Adv. Andrea Johnson will be expected to lead the Investigating Directorate into the next phase of its work as the people of South Africa look to the criminal justice system to bring those responsible for state capture and corruption to book. In this regard, the Investigating Directorate will be able to draw on the extensive information compiled by the State Capture Commission and is being strengthened through the allocation of more resources.”
Ramaphosa has also appointed Thembisile Majola as the new director-general of the State Security Agency with effect from March 1, 2022.
The Presidency said Majola would head the intelligence agency for three years and the move followed a commitment by Ramaphosa to fill key vacancies in the security services as communicated in his State of the Nation Address earlier in February.
Majola is a former deputy minister of energy and was South Africa’s ambassador to Senegal, Mauritania, Cape Verde, Gambia and Guinea Bissau.
“The appointment of Ambassador Thembi Majola to this position is an important part of our work to stabilise the country’s intelligence services. Her extensive experience in government, international relations and security makes her well placed to lead the reform and rebuilding of the State Security Agency.”
“Her appointment is expected to give greater impetus to the implementation of the report of the SSA High Level Review Panel and the recommendations of the Expert Panel into the July 2021 unrest,” the Presidency said in a statement.
- – Inside Politics
