Riyaz Patel
Parliament’s Justice Committee has unanimously agreed to refer Public Protector Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s suitability to hold office motion to National Assembly Speaker Thandi Modise who is expected to refer the matter to the rules committee.
This follows a request from Democratic Alliance (DA) chief whip John Steenhuisen that the National Assembly set in motion a parliamentary process to remove her.
According to National Assembly rules, a resolution for the removal of the Public Protector must be adopted with a supporting vote of at least two-thirds of MPs in the House.
Tuesday’s move, however, is only the beginning of what could be a lengthy and tedious process that will ultimately pass judgment on Mkhwebane’s competency to hold office.
Justice committee chairperson Bulelani Magwanishe told the committee that he would have a letter sent to the Speaker by the end of Tuesday and would also alert her to the urgency of the matter.
The EFF, who has backed Mkhwebane publicly and in the courts, was absent from the justice committee Tuesday morning.
The Public Protector matter was initially set down for next week, but on Monday the committee released a statement confirming the matter had been brought forward.
Last week, Speaker Modise reportedly said she wanted the matter “fast-tracked.” Previously, Mkhwebane wrote to Modise to complain that there weren’t rules for the removal process and threatened court action if her office was not granted protection.
How did it get here?
In July the Constitutional Court stopped short of calling Mkhwebane a liar when it found that her “entire model was flawed and that she was not honest about her engagements during her investigation” relating to the Reserve Bank/Absa matter.
She has also locked horns with President Cyril Ramaphosa and Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan.
Mkhwebane found that Ramaphosa misled Parliament and referred her report on his internal campaign funding to the National Prosecuting Authority to investigate possible money laundering.
Ramaphosa labelled Mkhwebane’s findings as “irretrievably flawed.”
On Gordhan, Mkhwebane’s probe centred on his alleged role in the establishment of the so-called ‘rogue unit’ during his tenure as SARS Commissioner. She directed Ramaphosa to initiate appropriate disciplinary action against Gordhan within 30 days of the release of the report.
Both Ramaphosa and Gordhan have taken her reports to the courts for judicial review.
The matter has become a political football with the EFF and some senior ANC members publicly rallying behind the Public Protector.
