Africa-Press – South-Africa. The Section 194 committee adopted a final report recommending to the National Assembly that suspended Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane be removed from office.
The committee adopted a draft report on 11 August, which was sent to Mkhwebane, who had 10 days to respond to it. Her response, however, was not forthcoming.
The committee’s decision at its meeting on Tuesday afternoon was not unanimous. While the ANC, DA, IFP and FF Plus supported the report’s adoption, the EFF and ATM rejected the report, and Al Jamah-ah leader Ganief Hendricks indicated that he does not object to the report in its entirety, only the recommendation that Mkhwebane be removed from office.
However, a court challenge could be looming.
“We reject the report with … contempt and we stand by our position that we reserve the right to take it on review,” said EFF MP Omphile Maotwe.
The ATM also indicated that it would support a judicial review, while Mkhwebane has engaged in litigation since impeachment proceedings were first mooted in 2019.
The EFF and ATM have supported Mkwhebane since these proceedings started in July last year. The UDM, which didn’t participate in Tuesday’s meeting, has also supported her.
The question before the committee was whether Mkhwebane, whose seven-year term started in October 2016, displayed misconduct and incompetence warranting her removal from office.
The Constitution has three grounds for removing the head of a Chapter 9 Institution: Misconduct, incompetence and incapacity (for example, a debilitating illness).
In March 2021, the National Assembly adopted a motion with four charges that Mkhwebane displayed misconduct and incompetence, with much of the charges based on four of her most politically-charged investigations, the SA Reserve Bank/CIEX matter; the Vrede Dairy Project scam; the SA Revenue Service (SARS) investigating unit (the so-called SARS rogue unit); and the CR17/Bosasa matter.
The charges draw on Mkhwebane’s conduct during the investigations and the subsequent litigation, which invariably ended badly for Mkhwebane.
Having made a litany of findings against Mkhwebane, the committee found that the charges against her have been sustained, and subsequently agreed to recommend her removal.
“This is today the final word of the committee on this,” said committee chairperson, ANC MP Qubudile Dyantyi.
He said the report will now be the property of the National Assembly.
What will happen next is that the report adopted on Tuesday will be tabled to the National Assembly, where it will be considered at a yet-to-be-determined date and put to the vote. A two-thirds majority is required to remove Mkhwebane from office.
Given that the ANC, DA, IFP and FF Plus expressed their support for Mkhwebane’s removal, a two-thirds majority seems highly likely unless a sizeable chunk of these parties’ MPs decides to break ranks and vote against the whip.
Mkhwebane’s term of office expires on 14 October, at which time, if she hasn’t been removed, she would get a gratuity of around R10 million.
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