PHUTI MOSOMANE
The Speaker of the National Assembly Nosiviwe Noluthando Mapisa-Nqakula says she is concerned by the ongoing allegations of corruption being made in the media against certain members of the Section 194 Committee.
The committee is conducting an inquiry into suspended Public Protector Adv Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fitness to hold office.
Serious allegations have also been made by Mkhwebane that the Speaker “dismissed” her when she asked to meet her on a confidential basis to seek guidance on these allegations.
Mkhwebane has accused Mapisa-Nqakula of exposing her as a whistle-blower regarding her allegations.
“It is blatantly false and malicious that the Speaker has dismissed Adv Mkhwebane’s serious claims or her request for a meeting. The Speaker is not in a position to either investigate, make findings or ‘dismiss’ allegations made against Members of Parliament, Spokesperson Moloto Mothapo said.
Mothapo said it is for this reason that when Mkhwebane asked her (Mapisa-Nqakula) for guidance or ‘way-forward’ on how to deal with her allegations, as per her letter, she immediately advised her on the appropriate procedure – which was to lodge a complaint with the Joint Committee on Ethics and Members’ Interests.
“Now that Adv Mkhwebane has filed a complaint with the committee, as per the Speaker’s advice, she is implored to afford the committee an opportunity to conduct its investigation and desist from continuing to vilify the Speaker and others through the media,” Mothapo said.
The Members’ code of conduct emphasises strict confidentiality of all documents, evidence, and information in the possession of the Registrar of Members’ Interests.
The committee governs the ethical behaviour of Members of Parliament in line with Parliament’s code of conduct and investigates alleged breaches.
He said Mapisa-Nqakula is mindful that Mkhwebane’s allegations pertain to the matters of the Section 194 Committee – a constitutional process that the Assembly rules states that it must be conducted “in a reasonable and procedurally fair manner, within a reasonable time frame.”
“It is therefore important that she does not involve herself in a situation that might create perceptions of prejudice or bias, conflict of interest or influence by conducting parallel and secret discussions with a key participant in the Committee process that is underway,” Mothapo added.
He dismissed Mkhwebane’s claim that the speaker exposed her as a whistle-blower as an accusation “without foundation and seems to be designed to mislead the public.”
According to Parliament, the Speaker had kept the details of her email exchange with Mkhwebane confidential and only issued a public statement after the matter was made public through the media.
The media story included the contents of a letter, which appeared to have been leaked to the journalist as it was exclusively sent to Mkhwebane by the Speaker in response to her request for a meeting.
However, Mkhwebane told Inside Politics that the speaker exposed her as a ” whistle blower” through the issuing of a media statement dated May 28.
“I am not vilifying the speaker, I expected her as head of legislature and the person who established the committee to behave differently, than just publish my engagement with her,” she said.
The Committee for Section 194 Enquiry into Public Protector (PP) Adv Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fitness to hold office has postponed its planned meeting for today until Wednesday due to the PP’s legal team not being ready to continue with the hearings. The committee apologises for any inconvenience this may have caused.
INSIDE POLITICS
