Phuti Mosomane
Qubudile Dyantyi, the Chairperson of the Committee for Section 194 Enquiry into Public Protector (PP) Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fitness to hold office said he feels vindicated following the decision made by Parliament’s Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests, which cleared him of any wrongdoing.
Mkhwebane lodged a complaint alleging that Dyantyi and ANC Chief Whip Pemmy Majodina had attempted to solicit a bribe in connection with the Section 194 Enquiry.
The Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests met on Wednesday to consider complaints made by Mkhwebane, against three Members of Parliament – the Speaker of the National Assembly Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula; Pemmy Majodina; and Richard Dyantyi – for allegedly contravening the Code of Ethical Conduct and Disclosure of Members’ Interests.
Dyantyi said he was informed on Thursday about the decision of the Ethics Committee.
“I have been vindicated. I have always maintained that I will make myself available for any investigation or process regarding this matter. I had made it clear from the onset that the allegations hold no merit and this, in my view, was merely an attempt to derail the Section 194 process,” he said.
The Ethics Committee said that the version of events put forward by David Skosana, Mkhwebane’s husband, to the SAPS, which forms the basis of the complaint, did not mention Dyantyi or Majodina nor do the audio recordings.
Similarly, the WhatsApp messages do not link the two members of Parliament to the allegations.
The Ethics Committee noted, as did the Chairperson in his response to Mkhwebane’s recusal application, that the WhatsApp messages and audio recordings seem to have missing parts and therefore may not be a true reflection of the communication between the late Tina Joemat-Pettersson and Skosana.
The committee therefore found that the evidence before it did not provide a conclusion on probability that Dyantyi solicited a bribe of R200 000 in respect of the Section 194 Enquiry.
It also does not show that the two members of Parliament breached the code.
The Committee found that the complaint is therefore unfounded.
Dyantyi said he was comfortable that the issues are now in the past.
“I am thankful that this matter can now be put to rest. I want to express my appreciation to all the Members of the Section 194 Enquiry that clearly voiced their support for me in our meetings when the allegations surfaced.
“Those members, just like me, saw this as another attempt to stall the process and to detract the committee from its mandate. It is unfortunate that the important constitutional functions of the committee had to be marred by this matter but I am resolute that I have conducted myself with integrity during the process.”
Regarding the complaint against the late Joemat-Pettersson, the committee said she ceased to be a Member of Parliament from the date of her death on 5 June 2023.
“Accordingly, the complaint against Ms Joemat-Pettersson does not fall within the committee’s jurisdiction,” Ethics Committee Chairperson Lydia Moshodu said.
Also, one of Mkhwebane’s bone of contention was that alleged that following a letter from her to the Speaker Mapisa-Nqakula on 23 May 2023, Mapisa-Nqakula breached her duties by disclosing the identity of the whistleblower as well as the content of the disclosure, she has alleged.
She said the disclosure was done without obtaining the permission of the whistleblower and thereby exposed the whistleblower to potential danger and jeopardised any investigation.
But the Committee found that the letter of 23 May 2023 did not provide any detail, including the names of the Members of Parliament allegedly implicated in the bribery/corruption allegations.
Also, that the political affiliation of the Members of the Parliament was not disclosed, and they were only referred to as “senior members of the National Assembly”, meaning they could have been members of any political party represented in the National Assembly.
It ruled that Mapisa-Nqakula could therefore not have disclosed the content of any ‘disclosure’ because there was no detail in the letter.
Last month, the committee, chaired by Dyantyi, recommended the removal of Mkhwebane as PP based on overwhelming evidence.
The committee, after following an extensive fact-seeking enquiry, found that Mkhwebane had misconducted herself and is incompetent.
After considering its findings, the committee resolved to recommend to the National Assembly (NA) that she be removed from office. The committee’s report is due to be debated and voted on in the NA on Monday, 11 September 2023.
The committee was established on 16 March 2021 to conduct a constitutional enquiry into the PP’s fitness to hold office.
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